[hr][hr][center][h1][b][i][color=silver]Belladonna Crypt[/color] & [color=9999ff]Andromeda Aldrich[/color][/i][/b][/h1][img]https://s22.postimg.cc/4yopm5jxt/giphy.gif[/img][hr][hr][b]Location:[/b] Ville au Camp - Peter's Grave ---> Salem Mass, 1692 ---> Ville au Camp[/center][hr]	The fog rolled over the edge of the water in the distance as Belladonna stood next to the still fresh grave of the poor deceased Peter. The woman had spent the last four months taking James to various places and helping him to find himself, she hoped that he was able to also put some doubts to rest about what he did was the right thing even if his methods were still in question. She had a new student today, the lovely Andromeda. The girl had lovely skin, there was just something about its paleness that she could respect. 

	Andromeda couldn't help but have some mixed emotions about working with Belladonna. She reminded her of her own timeline, of the people she had left behind, and the questions that were never answered. Had her brother made it out alive? Did he finally find redemption and serenity? Was her father's spirit resting easy? Yet she knew that she'd just go mad if she spent all of her time asking those questions to herself. She had enjoyed working with Giouse far more than working with Nancy - she was a history nerd at heart. And as she approached Peter's grave, Andromeda gave Belladonna an uneasy smile. 

	Belladonna smiled coolly towards Andromeda as she came towards the grave. [color=silver]"Terrible morning to you my darling. I do hope you are well rested. We have a court case to attend to today, should be very stimulating,"[/color] she said in a nearly giddy voice as she pressed her palms together in front of her chest. There was an air of glee, morbid glee, to the woman this day. Motioning towards the burlap sack against the tree she continued. [color=silver]"You must change, I know the attire is so horrible but we do what we must,"[/color] she said with a sigh as she looked down at the cape that covered her. Pulling it back slightly it revealed that the woman was dressed as a puritan. [color=silver]"I despise wool.."[/color] 

	Andromeda raised an eyebrow. [color=9999ff]"...Are we going where I think we are?"[/color] she asked, examining Belladonna's attire and then the mention of a court case. Combined with the fact that the elder Paradox was so giddy over this and Andromeda still thought of her as a witch, there was one moment in particular in history that came to mind. [color=9999ff]"But this could be worse - Giouse's trip he took me on resulted in a sun burn,"[/color] she mused, grabbing the sack. At least the puritan garb would protect her from the sometimes irritating star in the sky. She went off and changed quickly, coming back wearing the appropriate garb. She braided her white hair as well for good measure, figuring it'd already stand out enough on its own. 

	Belladonna waited patiently while Andromeda got changed and situated. [color=silver]"Oh don't you worry, we won't be visiting Salem during your timeline. I have picked something very special for you."[/color] There was this lilt to the womans voice. It was odd. Such a intonation on most would bring happiness, a feeling of warmth. Not from Belladonna. This lilt, while mirthful, was ominous. Perhaps it was just because it was coming from Belladonna's lips, perhaps it was something more. One could never tell. She liked it that way. [color=silver]"Do not worry about the sun, it is raining this day when we arrive. Positively dreary. It is quite lovely."[/color] Turning she began to move towards the portal. She did so enjoy traveling. 

	Andromeda noted that supposedly, Salem had a different history in various timelines. She had assumed the split was in the modern day, but perhaps that had been egotistical of her to assume. Not everything could happen in the 21st century in America, despite what movies and films suggested. [color=9999ff]"Sounds wonderful,"[/color] Andromeda replied, mostly due to relief that she wouldn't need to worry about a sunburn. She couldn't help but wonder what exactly Belladonna wanted to show her or what she was supposed to take away from this, but it was also strange to think she'd be so close to her home and temporally, so far away. 

	[color=silver]"Oh it will be darling."[/color] The woman sounded positively giddy with cool excitement. A portal found and stepped through. Belladonna had not lied when she said it was raining. Out in the woods. Trees tall above them with gray skies beyond that which let cool droplets of water fall to the earth below. There was that quiet tapping as the droplets hit the leaves and the ground. Belladonna found it very pleasant as she looked around and took note of their location. [color=gray]"Should only be about an hours trek to Salem from here."[/color]

	Andromeda looked around, taking a moment to breathe in the air. She wiped at her eyes for a moment, afraid that tears would fall. Whereas she couldn't say which way exactly she'd have to walk to get back to the place she was born, the general landscape and scenery just felt right to her. The woods of Massachusetts had a drastically different feel to them than the grounds of Ville au Camp did. [color=9999ff]"What direction do we need to walk?"[/color] Andromeda asked. She couldn't help but want to place where they were, to know which paths would take her towards other familiar towns. 

	[color=silver]"East darling,"[/color] the elder Paradox said as she began to walk. [color=silver]"You had just an interesting time line and while things are not as chaotic during this time, it is still a very trying time for our kind."[/color] There was a glance in Andromedas direction and a slight pull to the corner of her lips into what could have been thought of as a smile. [color=silver]"But from every tragedy strength is born."[/color] An understanding was in that cool voice of hers as they made the trek, having to cut through the woods for a while before a worn and well beaten path was found that they could follow.

	[color=9999ff]"Our kind?"[/color] Andromeda inquired. She knew her father's family history all the way back to the Civil War - anything much before that had been lost to time. Yet she couldn't help but feel that Belladonna was implying that her family had been practitioners of witchcraft far before her brother had come along. [i]Our kind[/i] didn't make sense to her in the context of Paradoxes. Her mind continued to spin and try to extract each piece of information from this. [color=9999ff]"Do you mean witches?"[/color] she couldn't help but ask, wanting to know for sure, as she continued to follow Belladonna and the path. 

	[color=silver]"Yes, of course dear."[/color] There was the confirmation as Belladonna kept walking down the muddy beaten path. The rain increasing and clinging to the wool capes. [color=silver]"Though it seems every time and every timeline calls us something different. Those that can tap into other sources of power. Witches, demons, the Trained, Mutants, oh the list does go on and on,"[/color] she said with a wave of her hand as the tree line broke and one could see a wide spans of open fields before a small town rested off in the distance. [color=silver]"Oh Salem, such a lovely little village though I must admit that I do prefer it in the late twentieth early twenty-first century along one particular time line. Very festive."[/color]

	Andromeda looked into the distance, seeing Salem come into view. She had been born there. It always struck her as slightly curious that she hadn't been born in her hometown of Coventry, but her father had insisted that Salem was [i]the[/i] place to be at the time. Like her brother, he was more on the spiritual side of things. [color=9999ff]"I'm not a witch though...Or anything close to one, unless being a Paradox counts,"[/color] Andromeda explained. [color=9999ff]"Walter was the one that messed with forces...I just traveled and looked for the bizarre, thought there was a beauty to them..."[/color]

	[color=silver]"Women my dear. Women with free thinking minds and hearts."[/color] There was a clarification to her statement though it was still most likely a bit perplexing. [color=silver]"And yes, the bizarre has a beauty unique to it. It shows a breaking of bounds that much of this world doesn't take either by circumstance or design."[/color] Walking down the road they finally came into the village proper and Belladonna made a beeline for a building at the end of the road. It was a church. [color=silver]"The days before separation of church and state."[/color]

	[color=9999ff]"Oh,"[/color] Andromeda said, feeling a bit awkward. As much as she knew that she needed to get past Coventry and everything that had happened, her mind went straight to witchcraft being real and everything that had happened - rather than considering that in this timeline, magic and other things like that seemed to just be fiction. She spotted the church at the end of the road, following Belladonna and she had to hold her tongue to herself - sometimes, she could've sworn people in her own time period forgot about that. 

	The doors pushed open and inside was a riot of yelling and accusations and anger and fear. Belladonna slowly moved over towards a pew and had a seat, making sure she slid far enough over for Andromeda to have a seat as well. A poor woman was on the so called stand, no chance to speak as more and more accusations came towards her. She was attractive by that days standards of beauty and most of the accusations were thrown towards her because she could read, or was not married, or a number of other factors that had nothing to do with witchcraft but were attributed to it. She was being held responsible for the thoughts and actions of men around her. Belladonna sat stoic as she watched. 

	As she sat down next to Belladonna, Andromeda wasn't sure what she felt - beyond nauseous. She had read all about the Salem Witch Trials, having spent a fair bit of time in the town that was her father's namesake. It was troubling that those same factors, those same insults that were ultimately turned into accusations, were not unheard of in her own timeline. As much as things changed, they still remained the same. She couldn't help but wonder why Belladonna was showing her this - she knew that the Emendators had been clear with them. They couldn't change anything. But it was sickening and heartbreaking to have to watch this. 

	This wasn't a trial, it was a parade of madness. Yet, what happened next wasn't in the text books. The woman on the stand narrowed her eyes. Apparently she had had enough of this. The candles flickered and then roared to life as they grew in length. "Witch!" various people in the room started shouting. The flames of the candles bent and came to the woman on trial, burning away the ropes which bound her hands. "Bride of Satan!" others called out, along with many other terms they yelled in anger and fear. They tried to come for her but as they dove, they were caught in midair by an unseen force and flew back, hitting the walls and landing in crumpled heaps on the ground. 

	Andromeda's eyes widened with fascination. [color=9999ff]"So in this timeline...witches were real?"[/color] she whispered to Belladonna. She knew that they were real in her own timeline, though she couldn't remember if the supposed witches at Salem had been actual witches or if it was just mass hysteria. And even though she had seen a lot of powerful events that were essentially just magic, driven by demons and witches, it still took her breath away to watch. Though she didn't know why Belladonna had taken her here to see this - but she couldn't help but wonder who the woman was. 

	Belladonna nodded and turned her head as the woman left the building while mass hysteria broke out, people fleeing for their lives. Rising calmly she looked at Andromeda and gave a soft smile as she cupped Andromedas cheek in her cool fingers. [color=silver]"Everything Bizarre that you adored does and so much more."[/color] Letting her fingers slip she turned and exited the building. Outside the woman stood there, the rain beating down and suddenly it stopped. A man with eyes so dark they seemed hollow stepped out of the shadows and towards the witch.

	"Leave my domain before I make you," he told the witch. She looked frightened for the first time and vanished, there was a feeling of something zooming by them. Then [i]he[/i] spotted Belladonna and Andromeda. "Field trip?"

	A shiver had run down Andromeda's spine as Belladonna cupped her cheek. As she followed her outside, she couldn't help but keep her eyes on the witch. Yet she felt another shiver as she turned and saw the mysterious man, looking at his terrifying eyes and presence. The skin on her arm stood up on end and she couldn't help but wonder if the witch had ran past them like the Flash or Quicksilver. [color=9999ff]"...Yes?"[/color] 

	"Oh this one speaks, you have a brave one with you," he said as he started walking towards them. Belladonna smirked as she held out her arms and embraced the man. "How are you Bella?" he asked. Now that he was closer his eyes still showed nothing but one could tell he looked to be Native American, his dress fitting of one beneath the long black cloak. 

	[color=silver]"Marvelous darling, just marvelous. Please, let me introduce you to Andromeda Aldrich. Andromeda, this one is known as Naumkeag,"[/color] she said introducing the two. 

	"Aldrich? Oh brought her home to roost?" he asked and then grinned slightly, it was unsettling. Holding out his hand. "You are probably confused," he said as the crowd ran out of the church. Turning his head he flicked his wrist and the world seemed to stop, everything but the three of them. 

	[color=9999ff]"It's a pleasure to meet you, Naumkeag,"[/color] Andromeda said - half to be polite, a little bit to practice pronunciation of the name, and then a little more because she was generally fascinated by the man...whatever he was. She doubted he was a simple human and her mind started running through the names of various creatures she had encountered. Had it not been for the bit of - she assumed magic - she would have guessed that he was a hunter. Of course, time seemingly stopping caused a little bit of panic within her. She had died in a very similar situation. [color=9999ff]"...And yes, I am confused,"[/color] she admitted. [color=9999ff]"I know my family roots can be traced back to Coventry in the late Civil War period but...I always assumed my father's fascination with Salem was because of its history with witchcraft,"[/color] she added. 

	"Oh really? Well, that is just because it is...." he began but he caught a look from Belladonna that cut him off. "I'll let her explain, it was nice meeting you," he said as he turned towards the church after kissing Belladonna on the cheek. His wrist flicked and it looked like time was rewinding itself. The elder paradox couldn't help but shake her head as she motioned for Andromeda to follow her back the way they came. 

	[color=silver]"Let us be on our way and I will explain as we walk,"[/color] she said as she pulled the hood of her mantle back up as soon as they go far enough away they stepped into the rain once again. [color=silver]"He is what is known as a Concret, an Elemental in general terms. He looks over and watches this area. Every place on earth has one. The higher the population the closer they are together. Currently he watches over all New England, by the time we reach the twenty-first century he only patrols this one town."[/color]

	Andromeda hadn't heard of Concrets or Elementals before, yet it wasn't at all surprising. Even in her timeline, she only had scratched the surface of the paranormal. This was a new timeline, one fresh with possibilities - as far as Andy was concerned - and with different lore than what she had become accustomed to. [color=9999ff]"Does Ville au Camp have one?"[/color] Andromeda asked. She imagined that it had to, given Belladonna's description, but she felt it was something she should have noticed by now if it did. 

	Belladonna nodded. [color=silver]"In this time line but she knows better than to cross over into the Emendators home. There is an... understanding,"[/color] she said with a lilt in her voice. Glancing over towards Andromeda she smiled slightly. [color=silver]"This time line is unique. So many things exist. Vampyres, Weres, Witches, Ghosts, Wyghts, Inuits. Daemons are a personal favorite of mine. Yet they still live in hiding for the most part. Some know of them, most do not."[/color]

	Andromeda couldn't help but smile slightly. The terms were different yet they felt familiar at the same time. In a way, it was comforting to know that things like that could still be out there, even if it wasn't her own home. Her mind was buzzing with more and more questions, especially as to why some timelines were called certain things - how one could be singled out as the main one - and so forth. She also wanted to know more about the Elemental that guarded the area of Ville au Camp - and she couldn't help but feel a bit of pride knowing it was a [i]she[/i]. [color=9999ff]"Sounds like home..."[/color]

	Belladonna stopped and turned to face Andromeda, her hands coming out suspiciously quickly. Grabbing the young Paradox by the shoulders as she locked eyes with the girl. [color=silver]"Listen to me darling and listen well. Home is where your family is. You brothers and sisters, the Paradoxes. Your mother, aunt, and uncles, the Emendators. That is home. No matter what you have been through before this life, this is your life now. This is your family now. I am your family. That is home. Where they are, is your home. You will feel a draw to them. Here,"[/color] she said in a rather maternal voice, like an older sibling, as she touched Andromedas chest right at her heart. [color=silver]"Only they will ever understand what you have been through."[/color]

	Andromeda stared back at Belladonna, her heart beating quickly. She understood what Belladonna meant - but to her mind, she could have multiple homes. The rooftop looking up at the stars in the desert was her home. The cheesy hotel in Coventry was her home. The study hall in her dormitory at college was her home. Ville au Camp was her home. [color=9999ff]"I get that - but I can have multiple families,"[/color] Andromeda said softly, not trying to be rude or anything. She was having some trouble letting go of her life from before. 

	[color=silver]"Dear Peter thought so, as did Drem, they are both dead now because of it."[/color] Belladonna wished that there could be more than one home or family but in this life she had seen what it had done, when connections were not cut, when love wasn't severed. When loyalties were split. It drew them to them. Belladonna inhaled slowly and her dark eyes widened. [color=silver]"Run.."[/color] she whispered. 

	She didn't have time to ask more questions, though the mention of Drem and Peter brought them to mind. They had died because of the Destruere, Andromeda recalled - or at least, she was fairly certain she remembered that was the truth in both cases. As Belladonna told her to run, Andromeda's eyes widened and she nodded. [color=9999ff]"Which way?"[/color] she asked, not certain where they were supposed to run to. 

	Belladonna was barely able to motion which direction with her hand before she was grabbed by an unseen force by her leg and drug backwards. Her face hitting the ground as her long nails dug into the earth as she was pulled back at an astounding rate. The hem of her gown seemed to start to melt around her pale calves. There was a sound in the air now, like the rumbling of digestion through a stethoscope. Belladonna seemed to vanished and a flock of ravens exploded from where she had been. The flew up and enveloped Andromeda, pushing and leading her towards the portal with their beaks and talons. 

	Andromeda didn't need the ravens to tell her twice, figuring that it must have been one of Belladonna's abilities as she took off at a run in the direction of the portal. Had it been a coincidence that the Destruere came? Or was her attachment to her old life the reason they had decided to ambush them? Her heart was hammering and she wanted to ask that question - that was what she did, she asked questions. She questioned everything and looked for more things that didn't seem quite right. Her mind was never still. 

	The ravens pushed Andromeda,keeping her shielded at the back. Batches of them would get knocked left and right. The portal came into view and the turned their attack towards the area where they kept getting hit from. Once Andromeda was through they vanished and a thick fog formed over the area that swept through the portal before it collapsed and cut the connection between that time and home. The fog got denser and denser, pulling together until the form of Belladonna could be seen standing there. Blood stained brightly on her pale skin, her dress in shreds, her cloak gone. 

	[color=9999ff]"...Was that because of me?"[/color] Andromeda asked tentatively. She took off her own cloak and handed it to Belladonna. She hadn't known first aid before and she certainly didn't know any now, but she figured it was the least that she could do for her. [color=9999ff]"Are you alright?"[/color] she then added, looking at her with worry. 

	Belladonna looked towards Andromeda and started to look over the young Paradox. [color=silver]"You're home, I'll be fine."[/color] There was a slight look of relief on her features as she saw Andromeda was alright before turning and heading towards the mill. She needed a new dress. 

	[color=9999ff]"I'm glad you're fine - or will be fine,"[/color] Andromeda said. She took a quick glance at Ville au Camp, thinking about what Belladonna had said - that this was her home. These people were her family. She took a breath and shut her eyes. She brought to mind images of her brother, her father, her mother...And then she imagined letting them go. When she opened them again, she took off after Belladonna, not certain if the lesson was over or not.