Finis Terra

Participating characters:
Raelyn L'Baan Seah
Louise Jose Chow
Oswald Trimling

Status: Partially incomplete/(Focus of RP) Ended

Last post: (12/30/03 1:37 pm)




Raelyn L'Baan Seah

Old? Yes. Dilapidated? Perhaps not, L'Baan manor had been relatively well kept since their departure many years ago to Mac L'Baan's new post and office though it was obvious that it has been months since she had been last cleaned. The main gate at the guard house had been left open in wait for the invited guest.

The gardens were nowhere near her formal glory and the paths were slightly over-run with weeds. The house itself had lost all signs of life, but what did it matter? She rested on an island all to herself. Old furniture lay up-turned, some knocked over by the strong ocean winds.

The beach was deserted, even the tiny shellfish that used to dwell there were no more. It was almost as if they had left intentionally, as if they knew that something would happen. The lagoons? Not a sign of life; it's water appeared murky and treacherous under the greyed sky. Lightning flashed and the thunder rumbled. Thick heavy clouds threatened to unleash their full force. Aside from the lightning, the only light now glowed from an artificial rock barrier in the middle of the lagoons.

There, staring straight ahead into the chopy waters of the Pacific ocean was Raelyn L'Baan; the sole heiress to the L'Baan line. The source of the cold blue light was situated in her wand hand. The only evidence of its power was the frozen barrier that would mark out boundaries of the fight that was to come. Lightning flashed again as feirce waves lashed against the wave breakers before dying away only to return again. Each try as futile as the last.

Only two people would know where Raelyn was - Louise and Oswald - she had addressed letter especially to them. To Louise she had authored:

Louise,

You have discovered our past and heard of the inevitable future and have made us both aware of the oath. And since we have graduated, we are officially full fledge witches and the time has come to take up our responsibilities and settle the score - much as I do not look forward to it - there is no use running from it, it will catch on to us.

I will be waiting for you at L'Baan Manor - you know where it is - I have told you countless times before when we first met. Do you remember? I cannot disclose the information here for fear that the letter may be intercepted and I do not want to endanger anyone else should they try to stop us. I cannot trust myself not to attack anyone who disrupts our privacy. I know not what I might do, even to you.

You know I still consider you my friend despite what has happened and that you are still my best and only 'sister' but I am afraid that for today and the sake of the future of our families we have to cast aside our friendship. The Raelyn that you will find waiting for you may not be the same Raelyn you knew.

May the Jacquot and L'Baan feud end today.
Raelyn L'Baan

Different was right. The Raelyn that stood now on the rocks was not the cheerful and out going lioness of Gryffindor who had spent days and nights working for her quidditch team nor the one that had been studying hard for her examinations. Neither was she the caring counsellor and motivator of her underlings nor the lenient and forgiving prefect. She was Raelyn the writer of the end, the one who would now carve the future of the Jacquots and the L'Baans onto stone.

To Oswald all she had penned was a short note, disclosing nothing of the fight.

Dearest Oswald,

You may not see me at the Hangout or might even stop hearing from me in the future as I've returned to my ancestrial home to settle my... family matters. No, do not send someone to look for me, there's no need for that. I just wanted you to know that I still love you and have not left you. At least I hope that I will see you again soon. Please do not question me, these matters are highly confidential and is best that you do not seek to find out.

In hope that we will meet again,
Raelyn L'Baan 'Trimling'

Tears had been shed while Raelyn was writing that note. Tears that had fallen and stained the parchement that had been sent off to the now eighteen year old badger. After which Raelyn had left to familiarise herself with her heiriditory power.

The lioness had prepared herself and expected every possible outcome - even her own death - She had prepared herself for the possibility that she was never to see the only man she had ever loved again.

But those tears were now long gone, she had a promise to fulfil, an old contract signed by the L'Baans of old. Alone on the rocks Raelyn waited.


Louise Jose Chow

'Tap, Tap, Tap'

Louise sat at her table, tapping her ebony desk with the end of her fingernail, staring out at the window. Things were weighing down on her mind and the Lbaan and Jacqout feud becoming a burden too heavy to carry on her shoulders. Raelyn was right, it was time to shed this burden and get on with life and not let it get in the way of her ambitions and dreams. But, what if she killed Raelyn in the process? Louise knew she would be filled by guilt all her life if she had killed Raelyn. She would never be able to face up to Oswald again and look into his eyes, remembering that she had killed his Raelyn. Would he blame her and seek revenge on her?

Louise's gaze returned to the letter that Raelyn had sent her. She feared this meeting, feared like she had never feared before. The day the feud would end could be very well the death annivesary of either of them, or worse, both. Perhaps, it would be better if she was the one to go. She had nobody to answer to should she lose her life. If she died this time, she would be able to see Louis again, yes, she would be able to see him again. Thoughts about him brought tears to her eyes again as she shook her head, not willing to dwell upon him.

Louise,

You have discovered our past and heard of the inevitable future and have made us both aware of the oath. And since we have graduated, we are officially full fledge witches and the time has come to take up our responsibilities and settle the score - much as I do not look forward to it - there is no use running from it, it will catch on to us.

I will be waiting for you at L'Baan Manor - you know where it is - I have told you countless times before when we first met. Do you remember? I cannot disclose the information here for fear that the letter may be intercepted and I do not want to endanger anyone else should they try to stop us. I cannot trust myself not to attack anyone who disrupts our privacy. I know not what I might do, even to you.

You know I still consider you my friend despite what has happened and that you are still my best and only 'sister' but I am afraid that for today and the sake of the future of our families we have to cast aside our friendship. The Raelyn that you will find waiting for you may not be the same Raelyn you knew.

May the Jacqout and L'Baan feud end today.
Raelyn L'Baan

That was the letter that brought her all the troubles. It was her destiny, could she run away from it? Run away from it's evil claws and hide forever. It could not be passed down to the next generation. It was written in the stars, that it was to end in this particular generation, end with Raelyn and Jo. Louise sighed. She already had her luggage packed, all she need now, was the courage to go and meet Raelyn. Louise looked hesitantly at the small bag she had packed. It was now or never.

Louise took her bag and mounted on her broom. Kicking off, she flew out through her window and headed straight for the L'baan manor. It was just a short distance away and Louise could see the trees that waved to her, almost as if they were welcoming her. But the old L'baan manor was equivilant to a death sign. Louise hovered in the air, not knowing whether she should venture forth and end it once and for all. Since I'm already here, my decision is clear, why do I still hesistate?

Landing gently on the ground, Louise walked straight up to the L'baan manor, calling out softly in a clear voice.

"Raelyn?"


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

Death, lie thou there, by a dead man interred. How oft when men are at the point of death have they been merry, which their keepers call a light'ning before death.

Memory flashbacks of the years they had spent together...

Their first meeting...

"Hello. I'm Raelyn and this is my friend Chaska. Chaska say hi!" The ten year old Raelyn had introduced herself and her elkhound to her new found play mate at an alley way in chinatown Singapore.

"Hi. I'm Jose." The deaf girl had replied. "But I have to warn you first, I can't hear you. I just lip read." Louise had smiled.

"Really? I couldn't have guessed!"

An innocent friendship that turned to one of sisterly love.

"So that's why they abandoned me. They didn't want me any more. They said I killed my mother!" Eleven year old Louise had cried.

"Well you've got me now. I'm not going to let anything happen to you if I can help it." Raelyn has pledged. "Can I call you sister?"

From then on they had bonded, being as close to natural, loving siblings as either would ever be. A beautiful friendship that was soon to be seperated by war.

It was Chinese New Year's eve. A loud explosion shook the ground and shattered the gay atmosphere of the chinese who were welcoming the Luna new year. Debree fell from smoking buildings and chared vehicals. Screams erupted everywhere as people fell one after another, some dead, some caught under chunks of concrete.

"Mom!" Eleven year old Raelyn had cried out, scrambling to reach the fallen body of her mother.

"Leave her be!" Someone had said, grabbing hold of Raelyn's hand and pulling her away. Chaska had been barking at the top of his lungs all this while.

In her heart, Raelyn knew her mother was dead. How could she still live with all that shrepnal from the bomb that had fallen just behind them not too long ago. She had died saving Raelyn's life. Raelyn was going to survive this war. She swore that she would so that she could find her father some day to tell him what had happened. Mac L'Baan had been sent back to Britain to fight for his country.

"Louise! Louise!" Raelyn had called out in vain. Her two year playmate was lost.

The war had been long and hard, but Raelyn had survived thanks to the care of a kindly chinese family and that strange occurance when she had nearly been kidnapped and raped by a troop of drunken soldiers. Some sort of force has pushed her away from them and enabled her to flee dispite the deep slash wound in her thigh.

It had only been two days after the war when the two friends met again at the dock in hope to return to Europe. But it was then that two barn owls had arrived with their belated acception letters, altering their lives forever.

"I can't believe it! Louise we're prefects!" Raelyn had exclaimed in excitement, her hands tightly holding on to Louise's as both girls grinned from ear to ear.

If that hadn't been enough another notice in the Gryffindor commons had sent Raelyn's head reeling. The girl hadn't dared to go to sleep that night for fear that she was in a dream and if she should wake up the next morning all this would be over. The notice had announced the two girls' appointment as Gryffindor's Quidditch team Co-captains. A partnership that held many happy memories.

"Come on Lou, we can do this!" Raelyn had shouted encouragingly over the din. "We're going to make it!"

"Score! Yes!"

"We might not have won but we will be better!"

"We got into the finals! We got into the finals!"

The entire team had embraced after the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw match, each almost unbelieving at the final outcome. Some were even in tears. But those happy moments were soon to be no more.

"Would you kill someone you love dearly just because it was pre-ordained?" The weeping lioness had asked her fellow prefect.

‘Fate is fate. You could fight it, but it will always end up the same..’ Had been Kou's reply followed by an analegy.

'There was a muggle girl who had a premonition, the man she loved would die. Now, she tried to make another path. To have a change in her own blueprint. Though, vivid in her mind was her love wearing a dark red jacket lying dead on a floor with blood seeping from his body. Now, the man originally owned a red jacket. It was part of his school uniform. Instead, later on, the girl bought him a white jacket. In this way, she thought she could cheat fate. Though, when the time came, The boy was shot to death and it was the his blood that had made his new white jacket red... This is how fate finds it’s time to intertwine with our plans..’

Yes... a prophecy... that prophecy. Louise had told it to Raelyn herself.

"Rae, we are bounded by this prophecy, the prophecy concerning the L'baans and the Jacqouts. You're ice, I'm fire. I'm not supposed to go near Yue Ying, the elemental sword that you possess, because it's something that.... that will harm me and weaken me..."

"I know that's a very brief account that I have given you about the prophecy, but what's most important is... Rae we have to battle each other"

"Raelyn?" A call that was barely audible wove through the wind. Raelyn refused to move. She feared that if she turned around too soon she would lose her composure. If Louise wanted to see her, she would have to come inside. The main gate at the gate house was wide open and one did not need to walk through the abandoned manor to reach the lagoons.

The time has come. There's no turning back now. Raelyn thought, her grip on her element based magic tightened as she waited for Louise to approach, her ears pricked up and listening for any attempts by the girl to strike.


Oswald Trimling

"What?" exclaimed Oswald, startling his owl, Liten. The owl that had just brought him this letter had already flown away, and besides, not being Jarrold, he wouldn't have been able to question it anyway.

The letter made no sense, so he read it again, and then a third time. Unfortunately, this didn't seem to help. 'You might stop hearing from me'? 'In hope that we will meet again'? This was serious, and if Raelyn thought that he was going to stand by and not get to the bottom of this, she had misjudged him.

But what could he do? That was the problem. He sat still, his head in his hands, and tried to slow his breathing down so he could focus on the situation, instead of just panicing. Right, she said that she was at her ancestral home. Which was, if Oswald remembered correctly, in Singapore. Who would know more than that? Louise, probably, but Oswald had no means of contacting her, either.

So, if he didn't know where the L'Baan household was, how could he possibly get there? The Knight Bus only travelled within the UK, so that was no good. The Floo network was difficult to use for international travel, doubly so if you didn't know where you were going. And he couldn't apparate to somewhere he'd never seen, even if apparition was reliable over that sort of distance, which it certainly wasn't.

There was, almost certainly, some form of international transportation for wizards. Some equivalent of the Knight Bus. Flying coaches or something, probably. He'd probably find out all about it once he started the Ministry job, but that was still in the future. Right now he had no idea of how to get to Singapore that didn't involve British Empire Airlines.

Well, the simple fact was, that no matter how how difficult it might be to get to Singapore and the L'Baan home, it was going to be even more difficult if he just remained sitting here in his parents' house. Pausing just to pick up his wand and a few other essentials, Oswald raced out of his bedroom and down the stairs. He grabbed his overcoat and hat from the stand and called out "I'll just be gone for a while!"

He stepped into the fireplace - just as well this was July, really, or it might have been in use! He threw the powder in the air, reflecting that it was also fortunate that this happened a few days earlier, before he'd had the house connected to the Floo network.

"Diagon Alley!"


Louise Jose Chow

Louise walked silently in. There was no sign of Raelyn yet. Her eyes travelled to the lone manor, standing right in the middle. She was not going to take her chances and walk through it, risking the attacks of pieces of the old house. As she walked by it, she was reminded by her own manor, one that had probably gone down with the war.

"Run Hailey run!! You know you can't catch me!" 4 year old Jo giggled, as she ran under the beds, trying to run away from her nanny. Despite having been abandoned by her family and made to live with the servants down in the cellar, little Jo Jacqout had managed to find joy in life in it's weirdest ways.

The door flew open suddenly as Darren Jacqout strode in and looked sternly at his younger daughter. Jo took a step backward in fear and stumbled over the bed and landed on the floor in pain.

"Yeowch"

"Shut up girl!"

Jo blinked her big grey eyes at her father. Tears threatened to roll down her face. This was not the way fathers were supposed to be. When their children fall, they should be there to pick them up, comfort them and asked them whether they were hurt, not asked to shut up. He would not even call her by her name. Jo's hopeful eyes fell, realizing that her father did not love her any more than before. Hailey, who had witnessed the entire situation, walked up and hugged Jo gently.

"I would appreciate if Master Jacqout here did not holler at his own daughter. For heaven sakes, she did nothing wrong!"

"She did nothing wrong? Are you telling me that Sevine's death was a mere accident?"

"Jo did not cause her mother's death, and neither would she have wanted to."

"I wouldn't know now, would I?"

Glaring at the maid, Darren slammed the door hard, shaking the pictures that were hung on the wall. Hailey hugged the youngest Jacqout tightly as Jo sobbed loudly, her little heart just having been broken by that so called loving father of hers.

Tears rolled slightly down her face as Louise made an attempt to wipe it away. A lone figure stood by the lagoons. Louise sighed softly as she made her way up to Raelyn. With every step she took, memories she shared with Raelyn flooded back to her. She would hate to lose these beautiful memories that she had shared with Raelyn. They were the only things besides her that kept her alive all this while...

"I guess you want to know why that happens..." Louise said softly, taking a guess, not wanting to face Rae, actually, not knowing how to face Raelyn after all this has happened.

"Rae, we are bounded by this prophecy, the prophecy concerning the L’baans and the Jacqouts. You're ice, I'm fire. I'm not supposed to go near Yue Ying, the sword that you possess, because it's something that.... that will harm me and weaken me..." Louise said, not knowing how to continue.

"I know that's a very brief account that I have given you about the prophecy, but what's most important is..." Louise paused. It was hard, hard for her to tell Rae, but since she had already said most of it, she might as well finish it. Louise looked up at Rae seriously, her grey orbs staring at Rae intensely as Louise said softly, and sadly.

"Rae, we have to battle each other"

That was the breaking point for both of them, the words spoken after silent for many months. Louise did not know how she managed to break her barrier of fear and told Raelyn the entire thing. The only conversation this pair had in the entire school term, ever since Louise had found out about the prophecy... Louise's mind was going back in time, slowly, bit by bit as they all flew back towards her...

Louise blinked her eyes in surprise. She could not believe that Raelyn was there, standing right before her. After the war had ended, actually, when it had started and that they were separated, Louise had never once though that she would ever get the change to see Raelyn again.

“Raelyn!” She had screamed happily as she ran forward and hugged that long time friend of hers. When she had been alone in that long, long period of time, she had missed Raelyn terribly and was so glad to see her again.

“It’s so good to see you again.” Louise had managed a smile as tears began to well up in her eyes. This was definitely one of the happier days of her lives.

Louise walked nearer towards the figure, fear consuming her as the distance closed in. She wanted to ignore this prophecy, go against it and turn her head, grab her broom and leave this place as soon as possible. Louise tried to turn around, but there was a seemingly strong magnetic force that seemed to be pulling her, a force she could not fight. Why had she even made her way here? Now, there was no way she could hide.

With her feet pulling her towards her destination, Louise unwillingly made her way towards Raelyn, feeling dread as seconds past. Something strong was bubbling inside her, something that was getting stronger and stronger. Why on earth had she not given the heirloom to her siblings? She could have escaped this fate and it would have improved her relationship with her siblings. But no, she had stubbornly stuck to the will of her father and did no hand over the heirloom.

She could feel something burning within. Strangely, she did not feel in the least bit warm. She could only feel cold, coldness of the heart at having to ignore friendship and fight her best friend, a friend who was almost like a sister to her. Louise could not take it; she could not bear the cold. She wanted to run out of this prison.

Lost and alone in a vast world, hunger had consumed young Louise as she made no attempts to move. She had lain down in what was called home when the war had started, when she was separated from her family, her friends. All the people that she used to love and care for have all died in the war. Could there be a possibility that Raelyn was still alive?

How could it be? She had watched the building that Raelyn had lived in shattered into pieces when the bomb came crashing right about it. Louise had almost collapsed. She could still remember the tears that rolled down her face, the sudden feeling of impulse to rush in and push away all that debris from her friend and save her, but no, she could only hear the horrible screams as the building caught fire. Louis had led her away by the hand, away from the source of trouble, but he soon left her too, dieing when another one of those bombs had exploded.

Tears rolled down her face… She was left with nothing now…

Louise did not know what to do. She had found her own kin, Raelyn, and her own little perfect world, Hogwarts, she has left Hogwarts already, and now, she might have to go through the possibility of losing Raelyn? What would be left of her than? Louise did not know.

She could see Raelyn right now; the shiny brown her and the striking turquoise eyes, there was no mistake that this was the girl she knew. Louise could feel the fire burning stronger, turning up the heat, yet all she felt on the outside was pure coldness, pure ice. Louise looked up at Raelyn, this was it.

“Hi”


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

"Raelyn!" Louise has exclaimed in joy as the pair embraced with tears streaming down their cheeks. Raelyn couldn't believe that the person whom she had thought had perished was alive and well. Lost in a flood of emotions, Raelyn has been left speechless.

“It’s so good to see you again.” Louise had added. Neither girls had been willing to let go of the other but eventually Raelyn pushed away so that she could take a good look at her friend.

"I thought I had lost you to the bombs! Oh I was so worried..." Raelyn began rambling. Realising that she had been rattling on and on Raelyn stopped herself just to hug Lousie once again. "I'm just glad you're ok!"

A meeting disrupted by two barn owls... owls that carried the letters that were to alter their lives forever...

"Hi." The clear distinct voice of Louise Jose Chow brought Raelyn back to reality. She was at L'Baan manor and there was something they needed to do. Raelyn did not follow Louise's suit, she did not return her greeting.

With her back still facing her best friend Raelyn said instead "I'm glad you could make it."

Every word in her reply had been but pieces of a lie. Raelyn had not an ounce of joy in her on Louise's arrival. In truth she did not want to hurt her friend - no her sister. Louise had been her only family since the war.

"We're going to be witches!"

"You mean we are witches... we're just going to learn how to be better ones." Raelyn had corrected her friend with a grin. "I never knew I was a witch... did you?"

Innocent times... now no more than a chapter in Raelyn's life. The whole friendship had been so perfect. From the beginning it had been perfect. Through the war both had survived and met again. Yet another perfect ending. But why, why did such a perfect world have to be shattered by a rash vow of the elders?

Another tear escaped from her turquoise eyes, slowly travelling down her cheek, leaving a faint trail in its wake. Raelyn couldn't bring herself to strike Louise and she knew Louise couldn't either. But it had to be done. It had been so clear. If Raelyn had had a choice she would have just laughed it off or just pretended it didn't exist. But she couldn't. It had been written in ink and signed - Raelyn had found the contract in the manor's library, slipped in the middle of her father's journal book-marking the date Raelyn had been born.

"... she is the one who will have to carry out the deed. We knew it the moment she opened her eyes..." That line had stood out amidst the page of elegent cursive. Raelyn's parents had known it would happen right from the very beginning.

"Strike me why don't you!" Raelyn wanted to shout. But she knew the answer, both were too weak to conquer that emotion of love. But it had to be done and Raelyn forced herself to take action. If Louise could not bring herself to start the battle, she would. She had to. Any more delay and Raelyn knew that it would be the end of them both. The contract had made sure of that.

"... they would have to battle to determine who indeed is the superior. If in any case neither strikes, on that day both will perish..."

Perhaps at the end there could be some hope that both survived. There would only be one way to find out.

It seemed as if hours had passed as the two stood in silence, no one had moved or uttered another word.

We can't avoid this Lou.... Raelyn's mental voice had shouted. Outloud Raelyn had not uttered a word, instead she had turned and moved to strike. A sudden flash of metallic blue streaked across the waters, heading straight for Louise's heart...


Louise Jose Chow

Fear and anticipation was swallowing her whole, but did she really anticipate this fight? Louise stood there, motionless. There was no way she would be able to raise her hand and struck her only kin, the only kin that she loved and had truly held a place worth mentioning in her heart. Louise’s gaze moved to her shoes, she had no wish to face Raelyn.

The heat was growing stronger by the minute as each wave that hit her increased the cold that she felt by a few notches. It was truly a surprise that she had not shivered, much less frozen with the harsh cold that she was feeling. Mixed emotions were controlling this power from letting it burst out and hit her opponent. One would need a strong feeling of hatred to strike at their opponent with a powerful blast, and like wise for this power, but Louise did not have the heart to do it.

Tears were rolling down Louise face. She shook her head vigorously, trying to remove unhappy thoughts of her mother’s death and her family’s prejudice, but they come flooding back as she related the story to Raelyn. She was glad that she had found a good friend like Raelyn, it was almost like, and she was now loved, a wonderful warmth feeling within her.

Teary-eyed, Louise looked up and smiled at Raelyn, glad that she had the honour of her company, glad that she had found someone that truly cared for her, someone that she truly cared for…

Louise sniffled, holding back the fresh batch of tears that were once again threatening to roll down. She wanted to scream and curse at her ancestors at having ruined her life when she was just having it all nicely. Why on earth had they been as idiotic as start a vendetta that lasted century old and made such a stupid vow? Louise had no idea. She wanted to yell, wanted to shout out loud.

She turned around to look at Raelyn, a ash grey eyes blinking wide as she remained silent. She did not know what to say. She wanted to apologize, apologize for the possible hurt that she was going to cause her. The power was now controlling her senses, but she had tried as much as possible to control it, trying not to let it rush out and hit Raelyn in a blow. She had to resist that strong temptation that was growing within her.

”I’m glad you could make it."

“If I had a choice, I would not even have step foot here”

Came her silent answer. The solitude there before was now broken with the short conversation that they had shared between them. Their fate had already been decided, what more is there to change? It was going to happen sooner or later, what difference would it make?A lot... Louise could feel her hand moving on her own accord as she quickly took hold of the other hand and held it tight, not wanting to strike yet as she tried her best to control her emotions.

“You’re my best friend, my sister, I could never hurt you.”

Silent words, empty promises, what was the point? Every promised that they had made before, had to be thrown away, toss to the wind as family loyalty still stayed. No matter how they tried to change the fact, Louise could never change her blood, her lineage, the Jacqout family that she had belonged to. Silent words shared by the beating hearts of the two suddenly stopped as Louise could no longer read Raelyn’s mind. All was in a state of confusion, for her.

When she had changed her name from Jo Sevine Jacqout to Louise Jose Chow, Louise had been determined to throw away her past and live for the future. So why did her past still have the ability to haunt her in such a way that it spoiled everything for her? Jo Sevine Jacqout her died, so why could the prophecy not have died with her? It was said to end with Jo Jacqout, but she was now Louise, no longer Jo, so why did she still had to go through this.

Something felt wrong, Louise could feel it. The Raelyn today, was not the Raelyn she once knew. The coldness and emptiness of her turquoise pools and the stern look her face held shocked Louise. She had stumbled a few steps, regaining her balance as she too, glanced at Raelyn.

It just was right… everything was wrong… and for once, Louise was correct.

Raelyn had taken out the sword, Yue Ying, and Louise could feel her head burning in pain. One hand moved to clutch her head as she stared at Raelyn. The power was growing stronger, very, very strong. A stream of blue light flew straight towards her heart. Louise’s eyes widened as she looked at the bolt of light, too shocked to move. And just when she thought that death was near, something from within her, a bright red flash flew towards the stream of blue light, meeting it in the middle of the lagoon…

Louise had screamed when Raelyn had shown her the Yue Ying, her eyes turned a bright red, while her hair had flames burning at the ends. Louise did not know what was happening to her… Something was not right. What was this mysterious force that she possessed?

Louise could not recall a single thing her father had told her, but was thankful that the strange phenomenon disappeared quickly, leaving her as she normally was. Louise turned to look at Raelyn, her eyes filled with shock, wonder, and excitement. She feared this ability, feared it, yet she was intrigued by it… And she knew, good things don’t come easy... she was right…


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

The cold blue tinge of ice, cold in nature and with a cold, unfeeling heart. Raelyn stared wide eyed in disbelief at what she had done, that blast of power had almost struck Louise... almost... what had she done?

“If I had a choice, I would not even have step foot here”

Choice... the one thing both women did not have, why had they allowed themselves to be bound by the past? Hadn't Raelyn told herself to move on?

Her blast had missed and struck the artificial barrier Raelyn had formed earlier, raising it's height by some significant amount. Her heart had been temporaily relieved that Louise had not been hurt but that moment was short lived, Louise was finally fighting back. A flash of red rushed from the other towards Raelyn. As it moved in closer and closer Raelyn could feel the intensity of the heat.

Her next action had been instinctive. If it hadn't been for reflexes Raelyn might have just stood to take the blast. And if she died... well that would have been the end once and for all. But her body had not allowed her to do so. yue ying still lay in it's shapeless form, the young woman had not been able to bring herself to summon the full force of her heiridatory power for it to take it's form. But now, her body was the one in control, not her mind. The next explosion brought out the full force of L'Baan Magic.

NO!!!!!! Raelyn's mind objected but it was too late. She had summoned every bit of energy and magic in her in defence and was now stagerring slightly as she tried to regain her balance. Yue ying was out in full force and who knew what it could do?

“You’re my best friend, my sister, I could never hurt you."

Those haunting words... where had she heard it all before?


Louise Jose Chow

Louise could feel her head spinning rapidly as she groggily watched the bolt of red light flew straight towards Raelyn. Her heart stopped in fear. She could not; she could not have it hurt her. Her eyes widened as she watched the flash of light with bated breath, watching it close in on Raelyn. Thank the lucky stars, Raelyn’s power had successfully defended her and Louise did not want to know what happened next.

She could feel Raelyn’s first shot of power move past her, nearly missing her by a few inches as it hit the artificial barrier behind her. She had been taught never to turn her head back at an enemy, but now, she had turned around and watched the artificial barrier rose by a few inches…

They were fast growing friends, ever since the day they met. Perhaps it was the fact the both came from such, such a tragic background that brought them together. It was perhaps just fate that they should meet. But Louise had always been thankful for this companion. Sure, she now had a family, but she only had a brother, now, with a sister too, life was almost perfect.

“Rae…”

Louise had said softly, looking up at her friend, smiling at her as her ash grey eyes danced joyfully.

“Yes?”

Raelyn had replied. Louise did not know what to say. She just felt safe that Raelyn would always be there with for, there for her. It’s a kind of feeling that warms your heart to the core. Returning her eyes back to the sketch she was making, Louise smiled and answered back.

“Nothing.”

Their childhood had been beautiful, like a fairy tale that was wrote out to have a beautiful and perfect ending. Both would grow up and be friends with each other until their deaths. But fate had given their fairy tale a twisted end, the prophecy. If their friendship had been meant to be a fairy tale, why could it not have continued that way?

But Louise knew that one fact still remained the same. No matter what the ending would be, they would always been friends, friends till their death. After this, should both survive, both would put the past behind her, and away from her. Their past was no longer going to harm them.

Louise turned her gaze back to Raelyn, noticing that her power had struck yet against, moving towards her with great speed, picking up the water from the lake as it did so.

They watched the pebbles skipped across the surface of the river as Louise jumped in joy. Raelyn’s stone had nearly made it to the end, the end of the river. Louise picked up another nice flat rock as she quickly hand it over to Raelyn.

“Try again, try again!” She had squealed happily. Raelyn had nodded and complied to her request. Once again, the rock skimmed across the surface as it skipped a few times before reaching safely at the other end of the river. Louise’s eyes dance with joy as she jumped up and down and hugged Raelyn.

“You did it! You did it!”
Louise had no wish to react, she would rather let the power hit her and let her die, than everything would have ended, and Raelyn would be safe, to be with Oswald, the only guy Raelyn had ever loved. Louise stood motionless, not making an attempt to move, but it seemed like her power had not decided to cooperate with her.

This was no longer their battle, their ancestors, the powers, were doing the battling; they were just the mere pawns of the game, to be the power source. Louise hated all this. But she could only stare in fear as she felt the power build up in her body, getting stronger and stronger…

Waves of pain hit her in the stomach as Louise collapsed on the floor, clutching her stomach as she bit her lip to keep herself from screaming. She was in her own room, and her brother was out somewhere with his girlfriend. She did not want to wake the neighbours up, knowing that they do not rise early in the morning.

The door of her room had opened and Louise could feel hope. Perhaps her parents or her brother had come home. She turned around, only to see Raelyn rushing towards her and patting her forehead.

“Are you okay, Louise?”

Louise could barely answer but she managed a grim smile as she continued biting her lip. It hurts, her stomach hurts and she did not know what was wrong. Raelyn had sent her to the hospital immediately and it seemed like Louise had gastric pains. Thankfully Raelyn had been there, else Louise would not know what have happened to her…

She could not harm Raelyn. Raelyn had always cared for her, she could not harm Raelyn. However, her body, her power, her ancestors were not listening to her as in a second, her power had summoned the strongest force as a bright red and yellow light burst out and move straight towards Raelyn… Louise stared in fear… No… No…

“No!!”


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

A perfect fairy tale… a perfect ending… something life never was and never would be. Raelyn should have known it would end this way, how could anything be perfect to begin with? She had been a fool, a child naïve to the truths of this world. The very truths she had no courage to face up to. Her sorting had been a mistake. She was no lioness, she had no courage to face up to the actions she had to take… she was weak… She wasn’t who Oswald had thought her to be… or was she?

Stop it! Raelyn shouted in her mind and out loud as she tried to block out those negative thoughts. They weren’t true! They couldn’t be! Could they? There, there was that doubt again. Raelyn fell onto her knees as her burst of raw power approached the other stream of orange-red glow. Did it truly have to end this way?

There was no choice… it’s a truth… there was… no choice…

Tears streamed down her face as the two spheres of power closed in on each other…

Why did this have to be? Why? A small voice wept in her mind. In the real world, Raelyn knew her body was violently shaking, but whether in grief or fear she could not tell.

There was no choice... pawns of our ancestors...Fate is fate. You could fight it, but it will always end up the same… Rae, we are bounded by this prophecy Each recollection appeared and entwined themselves about each other before fading away. Thoughts and memories from selected random events…

“You’re my best friend, my sister, I could never hurt you…

That haunting thought again… just where had she heard it all before?

It had been that day… those six years ago…

”Raelyn?” Louise had called as the two girls sat at the end of the peer, leaning on the ropes that stopped them from falling into the deep waters below. “If… if anything happened… I mean to me or to this country… would you help me?”

Raelyn was taken a back by the question. Everything had been so peaceful on the island and she had thought she was the only one who had sensed something was amiss. Sure there was news of the war in China and how the Japanese were trying to take over Manchuria for it’s rich supply of raw materials.

“Well, I would do everything within my power.” Raelyn had replies with a smile.

“But what if… what if you could escaped unharmed if… if you had to hurt me?”

“You’re my best friend, you’re my sister… I could never hurt you…”

Another empty promise… the first one Raelyn had broken in her life. What kind of friend had she been? A liar? A deceiver? Or just a silly witch, one who followed too closely to fate and destiny? Hadn’t she been taught that one had control as to where you wished to go? Or had it been a mixture of these ideologies in her life? Now was too late to regret and there was no time to think back on her life now – the two explosions of reddish orange light and ice blue flash had collided.

Evenly matched they had sent a reacting force so strong it shattered the ice boundary. But like what had occurred at the castle gardens… nothing else had been harmed… except the casters…

The force had sent Raelyn sliding across the rocks. Her vision dimmed as one last thought formed: You will always be my best friend and my sister… I will never hurt you…

The last dwindling thought and the world closed in about her...

Checkmate...


Louise Jose Chow

More recent memories… there were hardly none, or rather, Louise had no memory of it, only remembering the revelations of the prophecy which had been going on in her mind repeatedly, on and off…

"Rae, we have to battle each other"

The words that kept recycling themselves over and over in her mind seemed to haunt her, almost like a scary tune that hangs forever in the end, sending shivers down your spine… Sure, it was she who had voiced those seven words, those seven words that are going to haunt her, for eternity… Unless should one fateful day, she should lose her memory, or worse, die…

This was almost like judgment day, perhaps worse than it, this was a battle of life and death, for her life… Louise did not know whether this life was a life worth living, but having known Raelyn was one of the greatest consoles in her life… especially since….

Why had she even bothered, how could she have been so naïve? Her brother would always remain her brother, how could she ever have thought that he would be something more. Fresh tears welled up in her eyes again as they rolled down, leaving one clear streak upon her face… Yes, she loved him, she always did, but he was not going to change anything that has taken place… He was dead, long and gone, but had she been able to forgive him?

Raelyn had known what many others did not. Louise had told her many events that happen in her own life. Their memories were proof of their relationship, a close knit one. People who used to know them would be surprised if they knew both of them were at this current moment, fighting against each other… They would most likely be appalled at the very thought of it, but it was true; they both were fighting, against their will...

Louise tried to concentrate on the battle. She had day dreamed often in parts of it, drifting off into the land of memories. Was this what you called recollections before death? Was she near her death bed? Or had she already had one foot in her coffin. The bright red light that came from her was moving at breakneck speed, so was the bright white light from Raelyn… Red and White, Singapore colours… what a time to be patriotic… Louise snorted at the thought that came up in her mind, one which had no connection whatsoever to the current situation she was in…

Time seemed to slow down as the powers moved closer towards each other. Slowly and painstakingly, Louise watched with widened eyes as the scene unfolded before her. A bright and thunderous explosion took place in the middle of the pool, similar to the ones in the gardens, except larger and more potent. The ice on the surface of the lagoon melted as the water uncovered spurted in all directions. The fusion of the powers created a great force as with its last explosion, a scorching pink light engulfed the entire lagoon and L’baan manor. Louise could literally feel something hit her squarely on the chest as she was pushed backwards. Pain engulfed her body as she let out a ear piercing scream…

Everything was turning dim around her as Louise felt herself falling slowly towards the ground, having been lifted up by the tremendous strength of the powers… I hope this is the end… I can’t take it no more…


'Can you promise you won't do anything to explore your powers alone? We'll get into this together.'

Stepping back, Louise nodded, giving Raelyn back a weak smile. She held out her pinkie.

"Promise?" she asked, smiling, knowing that it was a little childish for them to do this, but still, it was a practice between them and it has never changed.
Raelyn smiled and intertwined their little fingers.

'I promise.'

Childish as it was, it had always been their practice since they had first met. Just doing it brought back memories of the fun they shared before the outbreak of war.

Their promise, a promise to stick through this together and never leave each other, no matter the circumstances, but what were they doing now? They had promises to always be friends, always remain together, close… So why were they listening to their ancestors instructions and carrying on the stupid feud started just because both parties do not see fit to get along well? Louise did not know… She felt used once again. Her so called ancestors were just making her a pawn in their game of chess, their tool to checkmate the king and call this victory theirs.

The only one thing on her mind was that she would never have put her descendants through this. Darn her ancestors.

She was falling fast and could feel the upward rush of air. Should she be the one to die, she would die happy, knowing that as long as Raelyn was safe, she would be happy… Her eyes closed, ready to feel the rough hard ground beneath her. If she could continue falling forever, she knew she would be happy… She simple feel of freedom, was just too comforting. The fight was over, she had no more to worry about…

As she felt the impact of hard rock on the back of her head, Louise spiraled into a world of blackness and unconsciousness, losing control of her limbs as her eyes wearily closed and she laid motionless on the ground, still breathing, but only faintly, holding on to the last though in her mind, that particular scene where they linked fingers with each other…

“I promise.”


Oswald Trimling

Oswald could have kicked himself. He was furious at his stupidity, but there was no time for self-recriminations now. Raelyn had grown up in Singapore, but that wasn't where her ancestors' manor was, and really he should have known that. 'L'Baan', was, for a start, not a Singaporean name but... well he wasn't sure exactly, but Gaelic or French or something like that. Breton perhaps. At any rate, he had just wasted a lot of time figuring out how to get to Singapore when, all along, he could just have used the Floo network.

For L'Baan manor was on a small island off the British mainland. The descriptions he'd found were vague as to exactly where it was, but wizards didn't worry so much about details of geography; it was enough that one could apparate, take the Floo, the Knight Bus, or any of a number of means of transport that frankly didn't care a lot about map coordinates. He suspected from what he had gleaned that it was off the west coast - Cornwall or Wales, most likely, but he wasn't sure. And, if it didn't matter to other wizards, why should it matter to him? What mattered was that he could have arrived hours ago, and now he might be too late to stop whatever it was that had happened.

With a flash of green fire he stepped from a large marble fireplace into L'Baan manor, still wearing a muggle suit, with overcoat and trilby hat. He looked around, seeing a large room with a bare wooden floor, high windows along one side and several items of furniture hidden under white shrouds. It didn't look as if anyone had been here for a while. Whoever had left it last had left the place tidy, just in case anyone wanted to move back, but they had put away everything valuable, or that might get damaged by dust. And there was quite a bit of dust, which surely demonstrated that there were no house elves still living here - if, indeed, there had ever been any. Good: Oswald always felt a little uncomfortable around house elves; their fawning subservience just didn't seem right to him.

"Raelyn!" he called out, but there was no reply, just the empty silence of the house. He stepped over to the windows, but all he could see was a small garden, now overgrown, although there seemed to be some nice fruit trees still standing. Beyond the garden was the sea, and in the distance a rugged coastline that frankly could have been anywhere. It was odd to think that any muggles standing on that shore wouldn't be able to see this island at all - or perhaps could see a forbidding rock that nobody would want to visit.

But there was no sign of Raelyn. Of course, she could be elsewhere in the house, or on the opposite side of the island, or... He ran through the house, calling her name. It was large, far bigger than the semi-detached house in Hexham that he called home. His voice echoed through the empty halls and corridors, but there were only spiders to hear it.

Suddenly, a brilliant pink flash lit the otherwise darkened house. Oswald staggered, caught off guard and feeling a charge of magical energy that might well have knocked him flat had he been closer, and not protected by walls of stone and brick. It had come from one side of the manor, shining through the windows like a mighty torch. He rushed to the nearest window and looked out.

He was facing the far side of the island, where a natural bay, rather like a tropical lagoon, stood facing the deep sea. There were rocks and trees here, a more natural landscape than the old garden on the other side. And he could just make out two sprawled figures lying on the shoreline. Neither was moving.

"Raelyn!" he shouted, but of course there was no response. He'd seen a door just back round that corner... he ran to it and grasped the handle, but it wouldn't budge. He rattled it in desparation, but still it didn't move. He kicked it in frustration, and tried to calm himself enough to think. It would occur to him afterwards that apparition would have been the best solution, but all that came to him at the time was the unlocking charm he'd learnt much earlier, back in second year.

"Alohomora!" And it swung open, right on cue.

He ran across the rough ground towards the shore. His hat blew off, but he didn't even notice, so concentrated was he on his goal. At last he reached them - yes, it was Raelyn and Louise, both still and unmoving. They were alive, though, his magical senses could tell him that. But their energy seemed weak, weaker even than he'd seen it before in unconscious people. Something powerful had struck them, and, for all he knew, their life was ebbing away as he watched.

He gathered Raelyn in his arms, seeing damp tears on her face, and struggling to resist the urge to weep himself. He called her name, and brushed loose hair from her forehead, but there was no response. "Please be all right... please don't leave me..." he murmured, almost babbling and not really knowing what he was saying. She couldn't hear him anyway.

Of course! He still wasn't thinking like a wizard should! He plucked his wand from his coat pocket and tapped her on the chest, "Ennervate!"

And he'd almost forgotten another thing in his distress. He looked up from Raelyn's face just for a moment, to point the wand at Louise. "Ennervate!"

He couldn't imagine it would work instantly, or even perhaps, work completely, given the depth of their... comas?... well, whatever they were. But he turned back to Raelyn, searching for any sign of life in that beautiful face.


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

A dream or reality?

Everything was a blur, as if in a dream. There was no light, she was surrounded only by darkness. The only glow she could see was in a distance. Every time Raelyn tried to move towards the light, the tunnel of darkness would only stretch and grow even longer. What was going on? Where was she? She needed to get out…

"Please be all right... please don't leave me..."

A distant familiar voice...

Who had that been? The unconscious lioness couldn't quite recall. Her temples throbbed as she attempted to gather whatever remnants of memories she could recall. Try as she might, she couldn’t piece together complete visual or audio memories… only snatches of letters… the only letters she had received in her life…

…Dear Raelyn,

….. this is probably the last time either of us will have to relax … You sounded as if you were busy; I hope it isn't too bad and that you can take some time out. There will be time enough to be busy when we return to school…

...Looking forward to seeing you whenever it might be,

love, Oswald...

…Raelyn,

I hope you haven't been too lonely with everyone working so hard… I'm glad to hear you'll be coming up, even if it's only for a short while. You can be sure I will be counting the days until you arrive….

with deepest affection,

Oswald…

Those minute fragments pointed to something else… a visit.. and someone by the name of Oswald… was he someone she loved? The various ways he had signed off hinted a possibility. And that visit…. Raelyn could faintly recall something to do with a Rose…

"Oh, yes, sorry... Raelyn, this is my sister, Rose."

Yes… that girl had been his sister… why had she left to visit him? If she had met his family as well he was most likely someone of significance to her.

"So, Raelyn, how have you been?"

Yes… the young man in question had asked about her well being… in fact, he had explained a lot about his family as well.

"There's so much I want to show you. I'm sure my parents will be delighted to meet you; Mother's quite… Oh gosh, I never told you about Father. See, he was injured during the War,"

Oswald! Raelyn's dream self cried out, in reality, her lips had not so much as twitched.
Her breathing was irregular and laboured, her heart beat faint. The lioness had regained just enough to remember who the young man was now. She needed to reach out to him.

"Ennervate!" a the faint voice had commanded. Raelyn felt a jolt stream through her from her chest through to the rest of her body

Slowly her senses awakened and subconsciously Raelyn was beginning to feel her surroundings again. Her nerves told her she had been carried, perhaps even cradled by the one who had cried out her name. Pain shot through her sides and limbs as she stirred slightly. Her entire body screamed in pain as the aftershock began to take its effect. She was conscious enough to know what was happening and perhaps even vaguely see her surroundings, but she was not strong enough to move.

“Oswald?” Raelyn called out weakly as she tried to move her wand hand to touch his face.


Oswald Trimling

"Oswald?"

The voice was weak, but it was enough. A great sense of relief washed over him as he saw her eyelids flicker and her hand rise weakly from her side. He took the hand in his free one and pressed it to his cheek. Her flesh was cold, but warmth and colour seemed to be slowly returning to the young lioness.

He grinned, almost hysterically, and crushed her to him briefly. "Oh, thank goodness..." he said, "I thought I'd lost you." He wanted to ask her what had happened, but thought it best to wait until she had recovered more. He didn't dare try another Ennervate; he recalled Mrs Grant once telling him that using the spell twice in quick succession could be a shock to the body and do as much harm as good in the long term. But she seemed to be recovering on her own, now that he'd given her the spark. He hoped Louise was, too, but couldn't bring himself to tear his gaze away from Raelyn to check.

He wiped away an involuntary tear from his eye. "You'll be all right now. I'm here. Whatever it was, it's over." And he continued to sit, kneeling on the gravel by the shoreline, cradling Raelyn in his arms as he waited for her to recover enough to tell him more.


Raelyn L'Baan Seah

"Oh, thank goodness... I thought I'd lost you." The badger had said as he embraced her frail form.

Raelyn bit her lip and resisted the urge to cry out in pain; her body had suffered too many injuries to be physically moved let alone crushed.

“Don’t…” She objected weakly, but with insufficient energy to be truly audible. Physically her body was gradually recovering in sense and function but not in energy. As for her mental war fair… it was far from over. The lioness could not recall what had happened or why she was where she was… there was only one haunting thought that lingered at the edge of her memory…

You will always be my best friend and my sister… I will never hurt you…

Who was that she was trying to recall? A blurry memory began to form…

A door to someone’s room had opened and Raelyn found herself being drawn through them, revealing a single figure sprawled on the floor. Another person then entered her ‘dream’ and that girl looked oddly like… her. Was she the Raelyn of the past?

“Are you okay, Louise?” The girl had asked, supporting the fallen girl and patting her on the forehead.

As suddenly as she had arrived at that door, Raelyn found herself being pulled away and out of her mind by someone else… someone calling out to her…

“You'll be all right now. I'm here. Whatever it was, it's over."

Something had happened? What had? Oswald’s eyes gleamed with tears that had been forcefully held back, hinting that it had not been something good. But what was it? Raelyn had no recollection what so ever.

“Don’t cry…” She whispered hoarsely as she moved a frail hand to wipe a stray tear away. “I’m alright.

Mentally she continued to wonder. Why were they here? Her vague memory told her she was back where she had been when she had been but a child. Why was she here again? Had she come to visit her parents?

Another memory jolt told her that her parents were dead. To be precise they had either died or at least walked out of her life some six years ago due to a… war… that’s right. A sudden memory flash back brought to her mental senses the smell of charred material, the sounds of explosions and people fleeing for their lives and screaming as black objects rained from the skies accompanied by tiny metal cylinders of bullets.

That recollection led to another brief flash of light, which vaguely explained what Raelyn was doing on the rocks and why she had blacked out. Some sort of explosion similar to the one of the war had occurred and that that girl Louise from her memory had been involved as well.

There was no denying that Raelyn was suffering from amnesia, the lioness would never be able to recover everything – the blow had been too great. Her mind would only be able to gather and recall people… but as for events, there was no guaranty what she would or would not recall.

Raelyn would never know what fate had called her out into the cold of a storm or of the old agreement she had had no choice but to comply to. That chapter of her life had been permanently erased. Anything at all to do with the feud was no more.

But that girl… what was her name again? Ah yes... Louise. Her memory bank reported that this Louise had been her playmate and best friend. In fact they had been as close as kin. Perhaps even closer.

Snatches of a conversation echoed through the black darkness of nothing. Raelyn could hear what was being said, but no visual memory could back it up…

"Raelyn!"

“It’s so good to see you again.”

"I thought I had lost you to the bombs! Oh I was so worried... I’m just glad you’re ok!"

“Louise!” the lioness called out weakly as she struggled to sit up, only to fall heavily back into Oswald’s arms.


Louise Jose Chow

“I promise…”

Peace and silence fell upon the L’baan manor as Louise remained unconscious, lying there in an awkward position on the floor, having fell fast from the sky. As soon as the world had gone spinning back, Louise had started taking a trip down memory lane.

Stolen glances had been thrown at her, her best friend. Louise had missed Raelyn’s company ever since she had found out of about the prophecy and had started to drift away from her, hoping that it would help prevent her death. She did not wanted to ruin her life now, when it was at its best, and when she had the man she loved with her beside her. Louise wouldn’t mind dying for her, but she would never allow Raelyn to be harmed, in anyway.

Louise turned her gaze back to her meal as she continued eating silently, her mind in a far away land of confusion as her heart got stuck at a junction and was not able to tell her the route that she should take.

Seventh year had passed with silence between the both of them. Besides the fateful event that had sparked off this incident. Yes, Louise had realized that she had been very silly, silly in fact that she should not have returned to the school. None of it would have happen than…

She really should not have done this. Louise knew she was drifting further apart from Raelyn. She had not told her what happened at the wedding dinner. Their unscrupulous methods of trying to take the heirloom away from her… the prophecy… she shudder even to think about it, even to think that the fact that her own siblings would actually kill her to take the pendant. If she had known what would happen today, she would have let her siblings killed her, or let them take the heirloom. She did not want this power infested in her. It brought more joy than pain…

What were her ancestors thinking?

Sixth year, the actual year where they have started drifting apart, where the strong ties that she thought that had once shared seemed to weaken, bond by bond, breaking up slowly as the distance between them pulled apart. Louise felt that she could no longer reach out to Raelyn, who was now more like a fairy tale to her. Their hearts no longer had the same connection and their minds were no longer on the same wavelength.

It was just after the auction, the promise. Louise lied in bed, silently thinking of the events that have happened so far. The mysterious fire, she could not put a finger to it, but she knew it had something to do with her family background. Her father had not told her anything, but her heart already told her so. She was determined to go and find out, find out about it. She was not going to explore the power on her own, like Raelyn had made her promise. She never broke her promises, especially not to Raelyn…

I’ll find out my destiny, one day…


Fifth year was one of the happiest years of her lives. It signified a new beginning, a rebirth for her. She had been pulled away from the pain and torture that she went through during the Japanese occupation and finally, she was returning to her own roots, her origin, and the one true place that she belonged. With her silvery white hair and ash grey eyes, she could have been mistaken for an albino and would have been shunned by most people. What they do not know is that she was no albino, it just so happened that these was in her genes.

As her mind threatened to wander further down memory lane, she felt a surge of power flowing through her, almost as if it was giving her life. Her eyelids fluttered as she opened her eyes wearily, staring at the place before her. She moved her hand to give herself some support, finding that she was still very weak even though she had regained consciousness. She did not remember what had happened before. Was she not supposed to be going to Hogwarts to attend school with… what’s her name? Raelyn? Than why was she in this place now?

Louise’s mind could not register anything. It felt as if she had just lost three years of memories. She scratched her head and looked around, noticing a pair sitting in a corner. Mustering all her energy that was left, Louise crawled over to them. One of them looked seemingly like Raelyn, except, the older version, and the boy… who… who was he?

“Hello? Could you tell me where I am?”


Oswald Trimling

"Don't cry. I'm alright," said Raelyn weakly. She didn't seem alright to Oswald, but she was getting stronger by the minute. Perhaps soon she'd be able to explain what had gone on here. Wizards - and witches - were resilient people and recovered surprisingly quickly. But what was it that had caused all this? And why had Raelyn sent him a letter that implied she knew something terrible was coming - something that might prevent her from seeing him again?

"Louise?" Oswald felt a little guilty again. He'd been concentrating so much on Raelyn that he almost kept forgetting that the other young woman was in equally dire straits. He could only hope that she was recovering as fast as the girl in his arms was.

But yes, Louise was slowly crawling over to them. Although there were no physical signs of injury, he could tell that she'd received a powerful shock and she looked confused, as if she was as much in the dark as he was.

“Hello? Could you tell me where I am?”

An obliviate spell? Possibly more than that, but that could have been part of the effect. At least she hadn't asked who she was, something that was entirely possible after a powerful obliviate.

"You're at the L'Baan manor, in... uh... well, on this island. You've had a bad shock, but I don't quite know what's happened. Perhaps I should take you both to St Mungo's? I could use a mobilicorpus charm to get you to the fireplace."