SalemFlame

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

A Collab between @Soufflegirl123 & @Hedgehawk
Featuring: Miles Price & Carlisle Aston

With Special guest: Aurora Newman

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Miles led the start of the procession of the coven’s cars, zipping down the streets, windows down, blaring heavy music. Miles screamed along at the top of his lungs as he swerved between cars and threw the car around turns. It gave Miles a moment of peace where he could at least lessen how much calming energy he had to transfer to Carlisle, also a distraction for how drained he had found himself becoming.

After exiting the car Miles followed Carlisle to where the barrier sat. He’d seen that barrier many times in his life but it had always been a consistent force. Now? It was meshed with light blue hues that looked like bandaids slapped on a bullet hole. ”Oof, that looks rough,” Miles comments half to himself, taking in the view from the forest. Man, he was tired. Although Miles was rather adept in his powers it was rare he had to keep someone calm for 10 minutes, let alone the near hour this had been. Not only that but he found it getting harder and harder by the minute, probably the curses’ doing.

As Carlisle talked half to himself Miles surveyed the scene. Many had come with them but so far the atmosphere was tame enough. He looked over at Erin and Serena Please don’t try anything he muttered under his breath. Hoping enough time had passed for Carlisle to cool off, Miles started to release his spell little by little. Like lowering a heavy weight the temptation to let go all at once was strong and eventually Miles fell victim. Almost instantly Carlisle cracked damnit. Miles quickly reinstated the spell with a whimper, not even a true moment of relief.

After Carlisle finished speaking Aurora made her way to him first to talk. Miles hung back, allowing them to have their conversation. When they finished up Miles strided up to Carlisle, putting on a goofy smile in an attempt to hide how drained he truly felt. ”We’re gonna need a new plan, bud. I can’t keep this up forever,”

Carlisle breathed slowly, trying his best to simmer things down. He could see the exhausted look on Miles's face. A dwang of regret and sadness hit his heart. He felt bad for putting the pressure on Miles. He didn't ask for this, and he just stepped up to the plate.

"It's okay. I need to fix the barrier again. So I need to focus on that. Should give you time to rest up" Carlisle then listened to Aurora. She was only trying to help. And he could empathize with her. On a normal day, this would be a moment where he could have a heart to heart with someone. However even with the diminished affects from Miles, her words were winding him up. The barrier began to flicker once more for a brief moment, but with a deep breath he would center himself and restore order.

"I appreciate the concern Aurora. And I will be fine. I just have to work through some things and figure out where I want to be in the world. Rejection hurts." Carlisle turned away, instead going to focus on his job at repairing the barrier. Then he stopped. A thought just hit him like a truck. He turned back around to Aurora. " You set curses yet? Well look, this behaviour isn't me, it's a curse that it is making me act up. But I don't know what it is. Just that it does exist. Think you can take a look and see if you can identify it?" Carlisle asked. He motioned to Miles to lower his enchantments. It wasn't fair to keep draining his friend dry.

Miles gave Carlisle a weary look, he wasn't sure how solid this plan felt especially after how the last attempt went. However, he did slowly lower the enchantment, waiting for Aurora to do her thing before dropping it completely.

Seemingly, she wasn’t the only one that decided to hang back. Seeing Miles was also there. Looking between the two Warlocks, as Miles tried to keep Carlisle calm. The elder female didn’t want to impose on things. But she was well aware that his mood was bouncing up and down like a yoyo; even with her words of empathy. “I am sure you’ll figure it out. The world is your oyster as they say.” she said encouragingly. Even if it’d take someone ages to figure things out, they’d get there eventually. As he mentioned getting rejected. Aurora sighed softly. “I am sorry about Lil.” Not sure how to help him in that instance. It’s not like she could change Lilith’s mind. The girl was stubborn, when her mind was set on something. But she did want the girl to be happy. Maybe Lil just needed some time to realize her feelings. Aurora wasn’t the best at relationship advice. And she was certain that neither of them would want it. It wasn’t her place to intervene.

At the mention of Carlisle being cursed. Aurora’s concerned look grew. “Well, that’d certainly explain a bit.” she muttered. It took her a few moments to regain her composure, from the shocking news. “I’ve worked on plenty of curses. I should be able to see what it is.” As she informed him; she waited for Miles to lower his enchantments, before she used her detection magic. Her brows furrowed in concentration and concern, after she got intel on what the curse actually was. A slight glow appeared around the younger male, as she used her magic. Allowing her to see what she needed, for a few moments. Aurora then dropped her magic.

It wasn’t good. “It’s a Lycan curse.” She spoke as she looked between the two males. “But I don’t know how long it’ll take, before it takes full control.” If she had set the curse herself. Not that she’d curse her own coven member, she’d be able to tell him more about the curse. So for the most part she was left in the dark. Meaning, she couldn’t be of much help.

Deep in thought. Aurora wondered if there was something that she might be able to do, in helping him tackle the curse. It’d certainly be a challenge. But she was willing to try. “I can look more into it, and see what I can do to take it away. But there’s no guarantee. I usually know how to remove curses that I place on targets.” It was the least she could do for him; try and help in any way she could. Just like Miles was.

"Hang on. Just hang on. I am under the effect of a Lycan curse? Who would want to do that to me. Why? What's the end game?" Carlisle asked, seemingly confused as to what was going on. This made no sense. A witches curse? Sure. A Magi curse? It's a stretch, but a Lycan curse? Nah. That was near impossible. But here we were. Carlisle let out a soft sigh. "Let's just hope I don't turn into one hey"

With that he would smile and then thank Aurora for her work. Gripping Miles by the shoulder he would pull him over to the barrier. "I am really scared dude. A Lycan curse. It explains why I am losing my temper. God I am going to start sprawling hair next!"

”Alright, alright, calm down,” Miles says coolly, attempting to cover the fact he, too, was left worried and clueless. Miles was stumped to say the least, curses weren’t his field of expertise ”I mean, no extra hair yet from what I’ve seen so you gotta be safe for a while… right?” he muses. Miles watched his friend’s every move, prepared to calm him again if he lost his temper but hoping for precious moments of recovery.

"I haven't encountered a werewolf. So how was I cursed? An object I must have touched was cursed. But I can't figure out what. Carlisle would run his hands through his hair, wondering what the heck was going on. "I don't think it could be anyone in the coven right? Why would anyone curse me?"

Miles remained silent as Carlisle had his panicked moment. Man, I deserve a stiff drink tonight he couldn’t help but think to himself. What a day of being responsible, on his day off. Regardless, Miles thought about Carlisle’s predicament for a moment until a lightning bolt idea hit him. His eyes widened. ”Brooo, the book,”

It was almost like lightning to Carlisle too. He cupped his head in his hands with a deep sigh. "No… you are right. Lilith told me not to fucking touch the book. Was that her vision was about? " He lifted his head back up. "Dude she is going to tear me a new one. She was angry before, now if she finds out I am cursed from the book… I will never hear the end of it. Shit. You know what tje weird thing is about that book? I am fairly sure that it wasn't a restricted section book. I kinda remember reading it before in the normal section" Carlisle questioned his thoughts. Could it be true?

”Well I can guess why it’s restricted now. You enjoy that earful you’re about to get from Lilith,” Miles replies. He tried to remember everything he knew of werewolf curses which was, unfortunately, very little. ”So… what do we do now?” he asks.

"We don't tell Lilith. That's for sure. I need to try and see if I can fix the barrier first and foremost. Keep me company?" With that, Carlisle moved forward to the barrier proper. And once more for the second time in the same day, began to fix the barrier. His hands would glow a bright blue as he focused on pushing his energy into the barrier. For the first few minutes Carlisle was deathly silence as he kept the pressure up onto the repairing and sealing wounds on the barrier. Then as he started to feel drained he began to talk to try and distract himself from the discomfort he was feeling.
”Yeah, of course, bud. Anytime,” Miles replies. As Carlisle gets to work on the barrier Miles sets himself up a couple of metres away, against one of the large pine trees. Part of him wanted to take a nap, the morning as whole seemed to knock a lot out of him. However, the other half of him was weary that if he fell asleep the curse might overtake his friend and he’d never wake up. Instead he settled for just soaking in the scenery. He couldn’t help but be reminded of his teen years, all the parties and the training. The long afternoons he and Lilith would sit among the trees just enjoying each other's company when her grandpa John gave Miles a few too many dirty looks to stay on the ranch. Miles always reckoned her best writing happened in nature… and their best make out sessions.

"So I need to ask you for a favour Miles. And don't take this the wrong way…" With a sigh, he hung his head. He felt ashamed about asking, but Miles was far better suited to the task at hand. "Can you talk to Lil? See if you can help patch things up, maybe do that confidence trick where you hype someone up? I could really do with someone in my corner for this. Lilith is amazing. Like truly amazing. I think… I think… And this might sound cheesy, so don't laugh.. I think I love her"

Miles was snapped out of his thoughts by Carlisle speaking up. Chances were his friend was starting to get drained also. When he asked for a favour, Miles gave a shrug. ”Sure, man. Wassup?” That was when the question came, and what a loaded question it was. Miles didn’t know where to start. Part of him wanted to tell him he’d already somewhat defended Carlisle but he wouldn’t get away with it without giving deeper context which Carlisle really didn’t need. Not to mention Miles was confused about where he stood with his feelings for Lilith. It had been 6 years, he thought he was far past over her yet their meeting ignited something in him he hadn’t felt in years- and part of him was convinced it did the same for Lilith too.

At Carlisle’s mentioning about loving Lilith he forces a smile, filling it with all of his non-magical charm, ”I know, Car. You didn’t exactly keep it a secret,” he replies with a small chuckle. Miles remained silent for a moment, still trying to decide how to approach this question. ”Look, Car, I’m happy to try and talk to her but I don't know if I’m the best choice. I mean, you know we have history…” Miles gives a sigh. ”Look, I can see what I can do, I just don’t know if I can,”.

”No, No. You are right. Asking you to do it is a little over the top. I just messed up really badly. I know I am not exactly the suave, confident, good looking guy that she deserves. But I can protect her. I can look after her. I can make her life an awful lot better.” Carlisle then slid into overdrive, heavily pushing his magical energy into the barrier. He managed to finally seal it properly. As he let go of his power, Carlisle fell onto his knees as they gave way from the pressure, his lungs losing all air as he panted and gasped to try and recover from the sudden extraction of his magical energy. ”I… shouldn’t have….asked”

”Hey,” Miles says gently, getting up to join his friend’s side. ”Car, don’t be sorry. In fact, I’m glad you asked. I’m… I’m sorry I’m not much use. You know if the situation was any different, if it was anyone else I would do it no questions.” He throws an arm over his friend’s shoulders, offering his own to help him get back up. ”You’re a good guy, Carlisle. I’m sure Lilith with come to see that,” Those words hurt. They shouldn’t have. He’d already talked positively to both Lilith and Carlisle about being together. ”Besides, you 2 are good friends. And you’re… cool,” he tried to sound convinced. ”And being confident isn’t that hard,”

Carlisle got up with the help of Miles, holding onto his arm a little too much, gripping onto Miles bicep and realising just how much muscle was there. Once he was back onto his feet, he would let go and nod. ”Well, I appreciate the thought. I will just have to work up the courage to charm Lilith myself. Might go speak to Ty. Apparently he was quite the charmer in his younger years” Carlisle began to laugh as he imagined the situation of asking Ty for help, and seeing the older mans reaction. Wiping the side of mouth revealed a small amount of blood on his mouth. Nothing to worry about surely?

”Anyway. I wonder how everyone else has gotten on?” Carlisle asked s he let go of MIles proper and turned around to see if everyone had regrouped.

Hedge's Testporium

Zach Carter

"It's not the good that die young, it's the lucky."

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B A S I C S Magic Type Witch Place of Birth Tanner, Washington Age 23 Height & Weight 6’2”(187.96cm)/176lbs (79.83kg) Sexual Orientation Polyamorous Pansexual College Degree Bachelors Degree in Music Arts P O W E R S Evocation Eldritch Blast - Zach summons a beam of crackling energy at a target. He can split the beam off and have it target upto three people. Lightning Lure - Creating a lash of pure lightning, Zach catches a target infront of him and pulls them towards him while shocking them at the same time. Lightning Bolt - Zach creates a beam of Lightning, travelling in a 100ft line. The bolt passes through targets, allowing him to line up multiple pour souls. Illusion Silence - Zach creates a 20ft Sphere where all sound is muted. No sound can be created or pass through the sphere for 10 minutes. Fear - people standing in 30ft cone infront of Zach become scared and see their worst fear, causing them to drop whatever they are holding and run away from Zach Phantasmal Killer - Zach taps into a persons mind and creates an illusory manifestation of their deepest fears, visible only to them. The target becomes frightened and every 6 seconds takes physic damage while in the nightmare. Lasts for a minute. Transmutation Kinetic Jaunt - Zach magically enhances his movement. For one moment he can move faster, further and becomes near impossible to hit. Blink - Zach can vanish from the mortal plane and arrive at the Ethereal Plane. Can walk along the Ethereal plane and then blink back to the mortal plane in a new location. Reverse Gravity - In a 50ft radius cylinder, Zach reverses gravity, sending everything unanchored to the ground upwards to 100ft. If there is a solid object blocking the 100ft then it counts as slamming into it.

B A C K G R O U N D Zach's childhood in Tanner was anything but idyllic. His parents were both warlocks, and were somewhat shocked that they had managed to birth a witch. Not that they really cared. Zach wasn't a planned birth, and was the result of a very drunken night of love. As such growing up, Zach was left mostly to his own devices, being left at the Coven to learn magic so he was out of his parents way. Moving into High School, he took odd jobs to make himself more independent and provide some funds. He bought a guitar and began to learn it, spending weekends busking in the park. While he wasn't a bad person per se, his relaxed personality, attracted a certain kind of bully, and Zach had no issue going toe to toe with them and laying them out. He gained a reputation as a brawler who didn't care who he fought. As he entered his later teen years he began to explore his sexuality, and settled on not being picky. So long as he got his every night, he didn't care where he got it from. If someone had anything bad to say about it, they could gladly eat an fist. He ended up keeping a little black book, where he detailed and rated all the people he slept around with and their numbers. Deciding that college might be of some use, he decided to enroll at Olympia while studying for a music degree. Unlike his fellow Tanner members, Zach stayed the course and got a degree in the musical arts. Suffice to say he did spend way too much time partying and sleeping around, practicing his flirting on any guy or gal that would reciprocate it back. Returning to Tanner was the last thing he wanted to do. But the message from Carlisle to return to the coven pulled him back. He doesn't know how to feel about coming back. With his reputation, and some of the state he left relationships in before his retreat to college. P E R S O N A Zach's personality is marked by aggression, self-centeredness, and a lack of control over his emotions. He is someone who tends to act impulsively and without much consideration for the consequences of his actions. At the core of Zach's personality is his aggressiveness. He has a tendency to be confrontational and combative, and he often responds to even minor conflicts with a disproportionate level of anger and hostility. This makes him difficult to work with and even harder to be around. Zach is also extremely self-centered, and he tends to view the world through the lens of how it affects him personally. He has little patience for other people's needs or concerns, and he often prioritizes his own desires over the needs of others. This can make him come across as callous and insensitive. For him everything is about self enjoyment. He has no issue going from one night stand to one night stand. Zach struggles with controlling his emotions. He is prone to outbursts of anger and frustration, and he has a difficult time regulating his emotions in stressful situations. This can make him unpredictable and difficult to trust, as people never quite know how he will react to a given situation. Overall, Zach is a challenging personality to deal with. His aggression, self-centeredness, and lack of emotional control make him a volatile and unpredictable presence in any group or social setting. While he may possess certain talents as a witch, his difficult personality often undermines his ability to form strong connections with others or work effectively in a team. F L A W S Zach's biggest flaw is his selfishness. Everything he does stems from his desire to please himself. Therapists would say that he seeks self pleasure to make up for the lack of love he received as a child. In reality, he just wants to enjoy himself. His explosive anger makes interactions with him extremely tense, as it can be really difficult to work out how he will react. To him, violence is always the answer, and the more violence the better. friendships with him can be strained, and anyone willing to be friends with either has to be really understanding, or be willing to roll with his punches, sometimes literally. Zach is impulsive. Thinking about things isn't his strong suit, fitting into his might makes right attitude. It isn't that he can't focus and think things through, it is just he prefers not to. If he is not in control of a situation, he will do what he needs to do to take control, often putting him at odds with any authority figures. M I S C Face Claim: Maxence Danet-Fauvel Color: 2A7E2E

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

Time: 12:30pm

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It seemed that everyone had made up their mind as to whether or not they were coming or going. It seemed like a good chunk of the Coven were coming to investigate. That was good. Carlisle was doing his best to remain as calm as he could. After Miles had revealed that his current outbursts were not of his own, he wondered how much of his behavior as of late had been influenced by this curse. He still couldn't quite believe that someone would really want to curse him. He couldn't work out what someone would gain. He knew that he had his doubters, but he wouldn’t call them enemies. Even Serena and Kobly wouldn’t hate him that much.

Leading the coven out of the household, the group got into their cars and Carlisle led them out to the outskirts of Tanner. The roads out here had turned to dirt, and eventually stopped completely. At this point the towering pine trees had surrounded them, making Tanner feel a million miles away. Carlisle pointed out the direction they were due to travel. It was far easier for him to retrace his footsteps when it was daylight as opposed to the darkness from last night. He could even see some of the bootprints he and Ty had left behind.

Carlisle guided the group to the clearing he came from last night. With a deep breath he found himself once more facing the blue hued barrier. To everyone else, it was clear that the barrier had been mended in some way. Carlisle's own barriers had a slightly different shade of blue compared to the rest of the barrier so it looked like someone had simply plastered a band-aid over the barrier. Inspecting it, Carlisle sighed. It looked like something had clawed at the patchwork too. They hadn't gotten all the way through, but there were scratches. It seemed whatever it was lurking around it came back to the scene of the crime after they left last night.

"The job looked an awful lot better when I did it last night. Guess I am going to have to spend some time reinforcing the barrier. God I wish Lilith was here. Her projection barrier might just give this the reinforcement that it needs. Now I am bonded to the barrier, I can feel when it has been damaged. My best guess is that I didn’t feel it getting damaged last night, as the barrier hasn’t fully bonded." Carlisle spoke out loud. Fully aware he wasn’t speaking to anyone but himself, but everyone around him could hear him nonetheless.

Turning back around to face the group, he suddenly felt it. For some reason or another, maybe Miles was exhausted, but the calming effect had ended on him, and the rage began to build up once more. He tried to focus on Lilith like he had done last time, but this time it didn’t seem to work. It was almost as if it had been bottled up while Miles had been claiming it, and now it wanted to explode out of him.

"Not that you know anyone actually cares? Just casually all turn up and be like 'Hey look it’s that loser Carlisle from high school, they put him in charge!' Carlisle would continue to rant senseless nonsense about how people didn't truly care or understand how hard things were for him. But to everyone else something different was happening behind Carlisle, as he was raging, the entire barrier was flickering, almost to the rhythm of Carlisle’s rage. As soon as Miles calmed him down once more, the barrier would stabilise, and everything would be seemingly back to normal.

"Okay. It's okay. I got this" Carlisle would take a deep breath. " Okay so everyone spread around and have a look around, see if you find something, though no going anywhere without a partner please! I will stay here and strengthen the barrier. You can also stay here and keep me company if you like!"

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

🤔

Is there any way I can reasonably play into the reluctant hero trope on this one?

@Wayward

Honestly, It would be possible. My big issue is that reluctant heroes tend to come across as overly edgey. You can certainly put together a character, I won't stop you. But I would say that at the very least, they must have been a part of the Coven beforehand.

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

Everyone Returns to the Coven. Things have already kicked off.

Werewolves have breached the Tanner barrier, Carlisle gets cursed, and now a party is in full swing. Things can't get worse can they?

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

<Snipped quote by Hedgehawk>

Awesome. Working on a character now. Wondering though, if there's room for a character that comes into the coven as an outsider? Like no relation to anyone currently or previously in the fold? Someone who doesn't realize that things they've been able to do are because of magic?

@Wayward

We have had several character concepts like that floating around. The big issue with this is that while the character concept is neat, the players end up getting bored because of the fact they are a outsider and then as such aren't included as much. SO while you are more than welcome to try and make a character fit that profile, the acceptance bar is alot higher than someone who is already in the coven and returning from College.

As for the not knowing thing. Magic passes down, so at least one parent needs to be a witch, SO they would know something about it. And if the parent wasn't around the Covens would pick them up and adopt them. The risk of exposed Magic is too high. Either the witches or the magi would intervene.

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

You all still accepting characters? Or at least willing to take a submission for someone to jump in if someone drops out?

@Wayward

Still accepting if you wanna join!

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

@everyone Thank you so much for taking part in this! I honestly didn't think so many people would bite!

So we are getting towards the end of the first scene where we will split into those investigating the ward, and those who are staying behind to do whatever they want to do. Joining the investigation party is not mandatory, and if you would rather do other posts exploring your character or their life, or collabing with those who did not go also, then you certainly can!

For now, this is your soft warning to get all the posts that you want before we move on. If you have completed everything for your characters. Then please give me like reaction. That way I will know when to push the scence forward and new things will unfold.

FYI, I will be messaging your about your characters over the next couple of days. Don't tell what I have told you to anyone else 🤫

Also, submissions for characters are still open. So if have been lurking, feel free to hop on board!

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

A Collab between @Hedgehawk & @Soufflegirl123
Featuring: Carlisle Aston& Miles Price
Location: Alchemy Lab
Interactions: Mostly themselves.

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Carlisle entered the Alchemy lab from the otherside of the verdana, Completely unawares of what was unfolding outside. Holding the edge of his nose to contain some of the blood falling from it, he walked over to a cupboard on the opposite side of the room, opening it haphazardly as he stared at the rows of vials inside. It was truly a rainbow cupboard, with many different colours and consistencies. Most of them haphazardly labeled. Someone thought mixing poisons and healing potions was a good idea.

With a soft groan, Carlisle fished out a small looking pink vial and popped it open taking a quick swig of the potion. He nearly wretched as he swallowed, it looked nice, but it tasted horrible. A few seconds later, the bleeding stopped and the nose would set back in place. With a sigh he would toss the empty vial across the room and into a bin, hearing a satisfying smash as it crashed onto the bin and shattered, the shards dropping into the bag. Carlisle then walked over to the pewter cauldron that rested in the middle of the room. Looking inside to see his own face reflecting back at him through the crystal water.

His insides were churning. He didn't know how he felt right now. Embarrassment, regret, rage, upset. Every kind of emotion one could feel was swirling around both his stomach and his mind. "Why am I so stupid?", "Did you really think she was going to fall for you?" At that thought, the rage in him boiled over. He would place his hands onto the sides of the cauldron and with an exhausted but also raged up yell, tossed the cauldron to the side, letting the liquid spill all over the floor. "Feel better?"

Placing his hands on his head, Carlisle began pacing the room, the occasional squelch to be heard as his shoes pressed on parts of the wet floor. He needed guidance. Normally that would be Lilith. "Fuck". With a sigh he pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts. Settling on Lilith his hand hovered there for a second, the urge to say something. Anything. Was building up. He was able to suppress the urge and push further down until it stopped at Miles. This could work. His thumbs began to move as he wrote out a simple text:

"Dude, I fucked up"

Miles watched as Lilith walked back into the dining hall where everyone else remained. He could have sworn she almost reached for his hand but maybe that was all in his head. As she stepped further away from him and into the house. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, Miles was sure he had felt it buzz only moments after Lilith had released her embrace but waited until their conversation was over.

On seeing Carlisle’s name at the top of the notification Miles couldn’t help but feel a slight pit in his stomach, did he mess up? He shook the notion away, since when did he care about these things anyway? Sure, Carlisle was a good friend- it didn’t matter, Miles had decided, reconnecting with a friend was no slight at Carlisle. His eyes fluttered to the message. Obviously a rejection it seemed.

Where r u he messages back

Miles was normally quite fast to text back, at least in most of Carlisle's experiences. It seemed strange that he had to wait a few minutes for a response to come back. By this time Carlisle had worked himself even more, pacing more furiously as the weight of his expectations began weighing him down more and more. With a brief deep breath, Carlisle centered himself long enough to send a single text back:

Alchemy Lab

Miles replied with a simple coming and gave a sigh, slipping his phone into his pocket. No rest for the wicked it seemed. He branched off the straight path down the hallway to head toward the alchemy lab unable to help but smile at himself at the prospect that it almost seemed he was sparing the ‘question’ Lilith had mentioned prior.

He soon reached the Alchemy lab and pushed open the door while calling out ”It’s me, Car,” Before him was a sight to behold. Carlisle, although seemingly healed, looked rough. The cauldron had been overturned but the floor looked incredibly sticky much like the floor in a club by the end of the night. ”Damn, Car, are you alright?” he asks, entering the room and closing the door behind him.

Seeing Miles entering the room Carlisle almost wanted to scream. He pulled on his hair slightly as he carried on pacing up and down the room. "I fucked up Miles. I screwed up. Big time. Fucking big time. I pretty much confessed to Lilith. While being chastised by her. What the fuck was I thinking!" With that Carlisle kicked the cauldron. His foot regretted it almost immediately.

”Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down there, bud,” Miles says, putting an arm across Carlisle’s shoulders. ”I think both you- and the pot- have been through enough already today. Come on, sit down,” he chuckles, leading his friend to a chair in the room. He fought the urge to tell his friend he knew of the rejection already but even he knew that was the last thing Carlisle needed right now. ”I mean, if you end up dating Lilith you’ll get used to badly timed chastising anyway,” he half mumbles as he slips himself onto a counter. ”Tell me though, what happened?”

"A few weeks ago, Lilith told me about a vision she had. She warned me bout a book in the libraries restricted section that I shouldn't touch. So I went and had a look and it was about divination and spirits." Carilse would lean back into the chair. His left leg shaking as he was trying to compose the overflowing emotions in his body. " It's not my place to say, but Lilith has been going through shit, and I thought maybe the book could help. If I understood how her magic works, maybe I could help. Maybe I could make a dispel magic spell that fixes everything. So I read it. It was enlightening, but didn't really help. So I put it back. And well. Lilith being Lilith, found out. So she came over to have a go at me for doing it. And in the middle of it all. I kind of admitted that I did it because I like her and wanted to protect her." Carlisle leaned forward throwing his head into his hands as she took a deep sigh. " I am so fucking stupid"

”Oh, so you do like her?” Miles teases, a triumphant smile spreading on his face that screamed ‘I told you so’. He hid the part of him that felt a twinge of sadness that him and his best friend would likely have their friendship perturbed with how they both liked Lily. Miles didn’t intend for it all to get so messed up. He gave himself a moment to process all the information Carlisle had dumped on him.

”In all fairness, why does the library even have a restricted section? It’s like, just don’t house the book on display?” he gives a chuckle before his face falls to become more serious. ”I’m going to be honest, Car, may have not been your brightest idea but, hey, good on you for giving it a go. Girls rejecting you is part of life, her loss. Does… urr… reading the book have any consequences? You have been more… how do I put it… irritable? Angry? Whatever it is you’ve been a bit off recently,”

"Of course I like her. I wouldn't have said anything if I didn't. I don't know… When you stayed behind and I had to come back here alone, It was nice to have Lilith around. We were the only two from the same year kind of. And as we hung out more over the past couple of years, I felt myself get closer to her. She is such a calming influence. With all the shit about retirement and my mother… She guided me. I owe her more than she will ever know. So to see her angry at me. It hurts. It almost burns" Carlisle's voice dropped lower. His body language softened, everything was as calm as an gentle ocean. Even if he was nervous. However he snapped out of it the second Miles spoke once more.

"Most of the books are just garbage. It's mostlt old spells or things that while not dangerous on their own. When combined with other things could cause trouble. And I don't know about the book. Admittedly I didn't cast dispell magic on it before using it. And I can't cast detect magic on myself. So I couldn't tell you." Then Miles turned the subject over to his anger, and in a click of switch, that anger returned. " Oh really!? Angry? I wonder why that would be. I don't know, maybe the fucking pressure of dealing with taking over the coven, dealing with the morons that now work here. Then I have Serena parading around, and then Lilith rejects me. Don't event get me started on the pressure of rebuilding my social life after my best friend decides to stay behind!"

At Carlisle’s admission he liked Lilith, Miles gave a forced smile, ”It's just good to finally hear it in words rather than reading between the lines,” Miles replies. Suddenly Carlisle snapped. Miles pursed his lips. Truly, he did miss his friend when Carlisle returned to Tanner but no one made him go back. The man really had changed recently. Although Miles was tempted to blame it on passing time, he had been back in Tanner for 6 months and it was only really in the last one he had noticed these changes. Still, at the attack on Miles’ choice to stay he looked right up at his friend.

”Whoa, dude. No one made you leave Olympia, that was your choice. You know I had a job there. I invited you to live with me until you had an income. It’s not my-” Miles had noticed that the volume of his voice was escalating louder and louder. He stopped, took a breath and calmed himself before continuing. ”Look, I’m sorry you felt alone, I am. But you can’t blame me for the outcomes of your choices,”

Carlisle scoffed at his remark. So this was how he was going to be. Miles finally showed his true colours. "I couldn't stay in Olympia. The embarrassment of dropping out. Everyone saying things behind your back. It was toxic. Plus my parents wouldn't let me stay once I dropped. But no. You couldn't understand that. You had it easy. You don't know what it is like to have such overbearing parents. Constantly wanting you to do better, be better. Cause heaven forbid another person your age might, just might, be better than you at leading the coven." During the whole triade, Carlisle's voice got louder and louder, until it finally trailed back to silence. Carlisle's breath was heavy, slowing down and becoming more methodical, like he was trying to regain control. His mind was centering back to Lilith, and the thoughts of the past summer.

Miles was taken aback by Carlisle’s rage, usually in situations like this Carlisle would hide away like a scared puppy. It was rare for him to raise his voice, let alone have a long outburst like this. ”Everyone? Really, Car? Did I judge you? How about Chris or Trin? Your problem, Carlisle, is you care too much about what everyone thinks about you!” Miles argues, imbuing his words with calming magic, not enough to control his friend but just enough to avoid Carlisle exploding at his response. He hated using magic on his friends but with how… touchy his friend had become it felt like a necessary measure. ”You don’t think people judged me too? Don’t act like you don’t know. Here comes that bastard boy of Tanner to drink all our liquor and sleep with our daughters. Oh, he dropped out? Of course he did, not a sober thought between those ears, that boy. The difference between you and me, Car, doesn’t lie in the weight of others expectations but how much we care about what people think and you, buddy, simply care too much,”

"Look…" Carlisle spoke. His voice now much softer. "I don't expect anyone else to understand. The weight of expectations that roll on my shoulders, its enough to crush most people. Lilith was my escape. The catalyst that allowed me to center myself. And I am sure we will still be friends, but today… Today that has been tainted. There will always be that black spot there, a pool of sad emotion and anger. I am scared Miles. I don't think I am strong enough to be the person everyone wants or expects me to be." His voice trailed off at the end, as his skin began to go whiter than it already was.

”Car,” Miles starts before carefully picking the words he wanted to say, ”Bud, you are one of the strongest people I know. There’s a lot riding on you but, realistically, a lot of that burden you’re carrying is due to yourself. You just… you just need to let go sometimes. Not be concerned with how people see you. You’re a badass leader, you’ll do fine. Might be worth finding a new centre, maybe on something less fluid than a possible relationship. Or may-” Miles’ stream of words cut off mid-sentence. His friend wasn’t like this. Carlisle was somewhat of a wildcard, yes, but this anger, this irritability, it was never part of his emotional roster. ”Car, do you mind if I try something real quick?”

Carlisle looked over at Miles while he was talking. He wanted to get angry again. It was bubbling up inside, threatening to spill once more, only to then be magically soothed. It wasn't a fix, but it stopped Carlisle from flipping his lid again. He forgot that Miles was really adept at manipulating certain emotions. Maybe that was why no one really hated him? "Maybe you are right. But as a leader, I get judged by what I do. Regardless of how well it goes. But I digress. Try what you want?" Carlisle shrugged his shoulders real quick, confused and what Miles was going to try next.

”Just, gimme a sec, I haven’t done this in a while,” Miles replies, rolling up his sleeves. He lifts his arms in front of him and closes his eyes. In truth, Miles didn’t need all the pomp to cast the spell but it did make things more fun. He opens his eyes as he casts a spell toward the man in front of him; detect magic. A grey aura only Miles could see illuminated where Carlisle’s brain and heart lie. ”Welp, that’s not good,” Miles mutters.

"What's not good?" Carlisle responded right away. Only a second later for the penny to drop as he began to feel the spell. "Wait… Are you casting detect magic on me?" He could feel Miles' own energy interacting with his own. "I mean I have magic. So what possibly is there to detect?"

”I don’t know if you know this, bud, but you’re cursed. I would say it’s not that’s always bad, left a girl in Olympia hanging once and she cursed me so I couldn’t taste for a week, that sucked but the way you’ve been acting, I think it may not be that innocent,”

Carlisle almost jumped out of his seat. "Who the hell would want to curse me! ?" More rage began to build, though this was more explosive. Almost like a failsafe. His mind was telling him to attack Miles. But as soon as it exploded, it simmered down again, and Carlisle lowered his hands that were at that point starting to raised towards Miles. "Okay… So maybe something is up. But what do you gain by cursing me? And how?"

Not that there was ever a time Miles regretted using his charming abilities but there were few he was thankful for more than this. In his position Miles would have essentially been dead meat, unable to run. He made a note to be constantly keeping his friend in check. Since when was he the responsible one? ”I don’t know, man. That’s probably a better question for a witch or something. All I can tell you is you’re cursed in a not good way. And supposedly the curse hates me for some reason,” He replies with a shrug. ”I guess for now the best we can do is keep you calmed and try and regroup to figure it out later, hopefully with someone better at this stuff than me cus, damn, my brain is fried.”

"I don't think it hates you. It's probably some sort of self defense mechanism about being spotted. Mother was really good at them" Carilse then gave off a small smile. "You know when Lilith finds out I am never hearing the end of this right?" He would then grab the cauldron and rest it back where it belonged. "Okay, just gotta stay calm. Investigate what's going on, and hey, maybe see what this is all about." Carlisle then grasped onto Miles hands to half shake it, half hold it. "Thanks for looking after me. I couldn't ask for a better best friend"

With that, Carlisle began walking towards the exit, his hand resting on the handle. "Remember when we kept trying to find theme songs to our lives… and I could never find one. I think I got it now. Paramore - Pressure. Fits perfectly" He gave off a goofy grin, for a brief moment the old Carlisle was back. He pulled on the handle and opened the door for them to leave.

Carlisle walked out and headed back to the dining hall. Now with a flashy new, repaired nose. Hopefully Serena wouldn't break this one. He kept Lilith on his mind, just incase the calming aura from Miles suddenly wore off. He couldn't keep it up forever. "Okay everyone. I apologise for the delay. As you can see, I have fixed my nose." He would then look over at Serena "I Do apologise for suddenly snapping and being sassy. I know that coming back here is.. Tough, and I am here to help in anyway I can. Speaking of helping. He would then turn to face everyone.

" As a way of saying sorry for what just happened, and to reintroduce ourselves, I think we should have a party here tonight. 7pm start. I have control of the Coven budget, so I can buy the drinks. Just leave a list in the kitchen of the stuff you want buying" This was it. Carlisle was back. It felt good.

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

Time: 11:12am
Location: Coven Household Dining Hall
Interactions: Carlisle > Serena @HaleyTheRandom

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It seemed that Carlisle did roll over pretty easily. Hayden had thought that she was going to have to threaten Carlisle with violence. But it seemed that he caved. She would shrug her shoulders and simply sit down in a chair. She was enjoying the little spectacle that was unfolding. She didn’t think that the little leader had it in him though to sass back at Serena. A small smirk tugged at her lips. Serena had it coming. Maybe she could use Carlisle to keep poking at Serena.

She carefully listened to Carlisle’s little introduction. It was clear that he was really nervous about leading the group. Even in his body language, he didn’t seem to have the confidence of a true leader. Hayden was just about to get bored when Carlisle finished his speech.

”Yeah, I am not really a school trip kind of person. So I will just stay here and get accustomed to the house. So you go ahead, and I will make myself comfortable!” Hayden was just about to put her feet on the table, when all of the sudden, out of nowhere, Carlisle seemed to headbutt the table for no reason whatsoever. Even quicker was the fact that Lilith suddenly dashed across the table and tried to claw her hand across Serena’s face.

”Finally things are starting to get interesting. I thought things were going to be really boring here” Sadly Kolby interjected and grabbed the small girl before she could spill any of Serena’s blood. Still. At least she got to see some of the show. ”Wow, Serena, You haven’t been here five minutes and you have already fucked things up. It is almost like New York all over again”

With a larger smirk she would finally place her boots on the table and looked over at little old Lilith and Carlisle moving outside. ”Wonder what they are getting upto?” Hayden would then rest her arms behind her head, taking in the energy and simply relaxing. She had an exhausting flight to get here, and now she just simply wanted to unwind.