Practice makes perfect [open]

[Nero Tiberius]

Nero was just in a bad mood today. He didn't sleep well last night, because some reason some of the younger years decided it was perfectly acceptable to be as loud as possible at 2am in the morning. He had gone out and threatened to change the password to get back into the common room so they would be left out in the halls. One of the younger years Zach, had said he wasn't aloud to do that. "You ever seen a fist this big Zach? Don't make me use it. I scare myself when I use it." Nero replied coldly.

Nero could easily be considered rough around the edges when pushed to his limits. He had been a hard sort in the beginning. His temper and thrust for a sense of power set him in with Slytherin, his courage a close drop into Gryffindor, but he studied, and studied hard. He viewed his education as a way to better himself, and put himself further in the world. So, he was put into Ravenclaw. He didn't mind it, although he knew Gryffindor's had some crazy parties, and nobody would mess with a Slytherin unless they were feeling exceptionally stupid. Sometimes he wished he had been put into the feared house.

The sun was setting on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. Nero wasn't near stupid enough to go in, at night, alone... Well maybe he was. He had done it before, but that was on a bet, with a considerable amount of gold on the table, and a date with a certain attractive Slytherin who said he didn't have the stones to spend a few hours alone inside. To everyone's surprise, and unfortunately for those who bet the gold against him he did it, unflinchingly. I've done scarier things... a few hours in a dark forest isn't anything to fear. He remembered telling them. It wasn't that bad, he just wouldn't do it unarmed. His reward was well worth it. Not only did he score the gold, but the date went exceedingly well. Nero smiled remembering the events of the evening.

But that was a different night, last year. Today just wasn't going well, what with the general lack of sleep, a first year spilling grape juice on his Astronomy book, and his lab partner setting his tie on fire during Potions class, it was all really understandable. Days like this called for ending with an intense training session. Both magic and physical that is. The tree that he was using on a target on the outskirts of the forest had its bark stripped off a few feet up the trunk from the repeated spell strikes, embers still glowing from where the last incendiary spell had struck. He always felt better after practicing Defense Against the Dark Arts, but not near as well as after training with sword and shield.

He strapped his wand back to his leg and picked up his weighted Gladius and shield. His Roman heritage flowed freely through his veins and he openly embraced it. Some of the more... traditional English wizards found the use of hand to hand weapons absolutely atrocious. Nero never saw what the issue was. Whats a wizard without a wand? In most cases a dead wizard, or at least a severely injured one. His father had always insisted that he train as his family had for generations, dating back to the times the Gladiators fought in the Colosseum. His physical studies consumed him as much as his mental ones did, resulting in a very physically fit individual.

He went into the routines he practiced almost every day. Each form having its own purpose and method. Some strikes flowed into a defense, and back into an offense. Or pressed an attack all out. In the middle of practicing a form he heard a twig snap behind him from inside the forest and wheeled about with shield raised for what ever came out. "Who's there? Show yourself!" He called out to whom ever... or what ever it was. It wasn't until after he spoke he remembered he was holding a wooden sword. Hogwarts would never allow a battle ready sword in, much to Nero's disdain right now.

[Selene Greengrass]

come closer and see,
    see into the dark

---

Dusk. A time when the sun began to disappear from view and let the moon and stars have their chance to brighten up the sky. When the world was in a limbo between both night and day as some got ready to lay their heads to rest and others prepared themselves for the nights festivities, whatever they may be. As reckless and mysterious as the dark may be, there was a sort of safety amongst it. You could do so much more in the dark because the night protected you. It covered and hid you amongst the shadows, making things that were once difficult in the day surprisingly easier. The troubles that the day posed disappeared as the sun set. A time of freedom and adventure that rose with the setting of the sun.

It captivated Selene Greengrass and drew her straight in. But then why wouldn’t it? Why wouldn’t a girl whose first name was that of a moon goddess, who was born under a full moon, and was a cancer, a sign ruled by that very same nightly light, be attached to the dark? It was her time to shine, in a manner of speaking, and she would take advantage of it as much as she could. It was the perfect time for her to be alone and enjoy a little time for herself. During these hours, the last thing on her mind was sleep. Selene felt so much more active and awake and she would often stay up as late as she could sitting in the common room, reading, day-dreaming, etcetera. And every so often she would try and make her way out of the castle, so that she was able to get a real taste of her favorite period of time.

Tonight happened to be one of those nights. Selene hadn’t seen the sky of the Scottish Highlands for months now. Since days before she had left the school for summer vacation. Ever since she had returned to the castle, she possessed a dire aspiration to escape from the Hogwarts walls but there were so many factors that she had to take into account when planning something like this that... let’s just say that it wasn’t something she could do every single day. No. Planning had to be involved as to assure that she would not get caught but also so that the sky of which she was going to see as beautiful as ever.

As much as she loved the full moon, the idea of sneaking off into the forest on a night when an immense amount of lunacy was in the air, was not the smartest of idea. The forest was, after all, forbidden. Of course Selene’s destination for the night was the Forbidden Forest. Where else was she supposed to go? Like the night, there was something enthralling about the forest. A dark woodland filled with something more than just trees. Curious things that, though fascinating, the girl wished never to greet.

But as comfortable as she was, Selene would never venture too deep into the forbidden grounds. It might of just been her personal feeling but she would rather not be considered a midnight snack for an adventurous acromantula. Thank you very much but that wasn’t exactly what the goal of her little journeys were. Selene much preferred to venture just far enough into the forest so that the lights of the castle could no longer be seen but not far enough to say that it could be considered deep within.

There was something special about being able to be in the forest and stare up at the sky and see the little bits of light that escaped through the leafy canopy above. It was a different type of magic. It wasn’t like wizardry and wandlore but almost a completely different phenomenon. It was more of a enigmatic feeling that had its own grasp of the world. An irrefutable feeling that every poor sole in existence was able acknowledge.

With each step, she found herself going deeper and deeper into the forest. Into the trees. Leaving the castle and the rest of her familiar world behind. Even though this was clearly not her first time in the forest, each time she entered the forest the environment seemed slightly different to her. She kept close enough to the edge of the forest but the trees still did their job of hiding her from view of those outside the forest. It wasn’t a strange land, and it was in fact one that she was quite comfortable with but all the same, she didn’t know it inside out. She didn’t know what lay behind every tree. It was full of surprises. Surprises, secrets and what looked like a figure. A silhouette of what looked to be a figure holding a sword just on the outskirts of the forest...

Selene couldn’t possibly know about all of the creatures living in or by the Forbidden Forest but what she did suspect was that many of them didn’t often possess swords. Or be of human character. Curiouser and curiouser, Selene did the very brave and intelligent act of moving closer to whatever it was. Merlin’s guess as to what could possibly be. A vampire or an angry centaur or some old hag that was doing this just to draw in some foolish young student that thought it would be a fun idea to sneak out after bed and explore the Forbidden Forest. But Selene intuition told her otherwise and so she went forth to get a closer look.

Unfortunately, there was one thing that Selene wasn’t and that was a mouse. Well, she wasn’t the perfect mouse. She tried to be as quiet as she could possibly be but before she knew it she heard words echoing out towards her. Words which made her believe that her presence had become known. There was always the option of her just running in the opposite direction... but no. Even though she couldn’t see the face of whoever was there, the voice sounded both human and mildly sane. Besides, maybe this could be the spice to her night!?

“I don’t believe that I should show myself to you. For why should I should I do such a thing? Your the one who won’t dare come and take a look at me for yourself. Why do you deserve to see who, or what I am? What kind of lunatic would dare be out here at this hour, anyways? Many a thing rests deep in the trees and not all of them mean well, you know.“ Her body rested against the trunk of a tree as she took her eyes away from the boy and looked up at the sky. The sun was almost fully out of view. The games of the night were just beginning.

---

just follow your eyes
just follow your eyes

[Nero Tiberius]

Nero hadn't come across anything from the Forest in a while, Once or twice he saw a few Centaurs passing through that had stopped to watch him for a moment, but when he saw them, they took off. Who ever, or what ever was talking to him was the most interaction he had other then that creepy I'm-being-watched kind of feeling. Who ever it was, was intelligent, and had a way of putting things. It was challenging him, and tonight, from the current mood he was in he accepted it, some would say foolishly, but Nero had a bit of a wild side in him that he had to keep up.

"I don’t believe that I should show myself to you. For why should I should I do such a thing? Your the one who won’t dare come and take a look at me for yourself. Why do you deserve to see who, or what I am? What kind of lunatic would dare be out here at this hour, anyways? Many a thing rests deep in the trees and not all of them mean well, you know.“

The feminine voice called out to him. It didn't sound very threatening, but sheathed his Gladius, and drew his wand instead. "If your calling me a lunatic, then that would make us both for being here at this hour, unless you live in the forest." he said approaching the treeline with shield raised ready to cast on what ever threatened him first. Over the last summer his uncle had come home for a brief time and taught him that while when dealing with magic, a physical shield helped little, if you are dealing with a magical creature though, it could save your life and give you enough time to get a spell off to defend yourself. He recalled a story about how his uncle had escaped a nest of Acromantulas because he had something to block their fangs with.

As Nero crossed into the treeline he began scanning for anything out of the ordinary. Sights, sounds, smells, the basic things to be looking for when keeping your wits about you in a situation such as this. One thing he was sure of, is that the creatures of the forest didn't wear perfume, which he was sure he smelled. He didn't know of any creatures who gave off a scent that one might call pleasant, but who knows. There are all sorts of creatures in the forest that nobody had ever even heard of probably.

Nero stopped and surveyed his surroundings once again. "You dared me to advance and I did. I say its your move now. I'm willing to bet that you dont have the courage to show yourself." He taunted keeping a sharp eye out for any sign of movement. It was times like this that he was thankful for his training, and he thought of future times in his life that there would be moments like this. He was on the track to becoming an Auror, and knew that there would be more then a few times that this kind of circumstance happened.

[Selene Greengrass]

come closer and see,
    see into the dark

---

Audacity was a characteristic that, unfortunately, Selene Greengrass often possessed. The word happened to have two meanings, one was engaging in rude, insolent behavior. The other being an inclination to take risks, risks of the more daring, nearing on reckless, variety. Selene in fact could be either or. She could easily be quite impudent to to the others around her. Her regard for others feelings was was something that needed an amount of work done on it. As for the other definition of the word, that was something that she related to even more so.

Self preservation was something that was incredibly important to much of the Slytherin population. Most of them would always think completely through a situation before they acted, weighing all the possible consequences in order to find out what would benefit them in the way which they saw best. Selene still possessed this house trait but her thinking didn’t take the path which would, in the long run, be the the best decision. She chose the journey which would take her down through a road of adventure, excitement, and risk. There was nothing more that she wanted than to do the things which, though might not be the smartest, would be the most memorable for her. And how they were!

Here she was tonight, in one of those same situations. Not the most intelligent, but of course, one of the most arousing things she had done as of late. Hiding behind a tree in the Forbidden Forest, under the nights sky as she engaged in some sort of verbal nonsense with a mysterious male.

"No, no, no. I don’t happen to live in the forest. I’ll give you that much. Unfortunately I am not all that interesting. Just a dear lovely human but maybe you’re right... Chances are indeed that I could easily be quite the lunatic. Your problem though.” She regretted it instantly, telling him that she didn’t live in the forest. The fun she could of had if only she had said otherwise. There was something so purely enjoyable about not telling people exactly who you were. The freedom to create a persona completely different from your own. Free of any and all possible restrictions that the real you had tied to its limbs. Now that was something Selene longed for.

Peeking out from behind the tree, she was lucky enough to find that some moonlight briefly illuminated the figure for a seconds. She saw the face for just long enough to be able to figure out that her companion for the night was indeed someone that she knew. Alas, it was not a ghoul after all, but that was to be expected. In someways she would have preferred if it was some dangerous creature opposed to a schoolboy whose acquaintance she did know. But you can’t always get what you want.

In these earlier brief seconds she had also caught that he was beginning to inch closer and that he had brought out his wand. Terrific! “Come closer, come closer! And is that a wand I saw? Shall we engage in the ancient art? Sounds like fun to me. But with the Forbidden Forest as our stage? What creatures could we possibly draw out from it’s shadowy depths as sparks fly? Hmm. Do wish to find out?” Still hidden behind the same old tree, Selene took out her own wand and began twirling it around in her fingers. As much as she would love to see sparks fly the problem with that was that the type of magic that the type of magic she knew, wasn’t that inconspicuous.

As he spoke again, his voice was increasingly closer to hers. Ah, he was joining in with the game as well. Playing along just as any playing piece should. Trying to get her to come out of her little hiding spot. There was no fun in that though. If she showed herself, where would they go from there? The fun would come to an end and Selene couldn’t have that now could she? “But I do so enjoy this tree. It’s quite so beautiful and I feel that after these past few minutes we have created a little bond between the two of us. Though if extenuating circumstances made it so I did have to part from her,”

[/b] She said as she paused to take the risk of quickly moving behind another tree. “There are so many other trees in this forest that I would have many others to keep me company.” Chances were that he had saw her move, but cat and mouse could go on, and on, and on. [/blockquote][/font][/size]

---

just follow your eyes
just follow your eyes

[Nero Tiberius]

Cat and Mouse, a phrase used to describe either two mammals, sworn to be mortal enemies till the day the world ceased to be, or until one species was wiped out, or used to describe a game between two parties. Which the latter meaning was in use for this circumstance. It could be an innocent game played by two people, or an army fighting against a militia using gorilla warfare tactics. Much the same as the Dark Lord was using against the Ministry, and the entire Wizard community.

Nero was playing his own version of Cat and Mouse with what was at least now confirmed as most likely a student. Of course he could throw his Prefect weight around, but where would the fun in that be? Recently, Nero had been loosening up on his crack downs on other students, except for the more serious offenses. Being out past curfew, especially this close to the Forest was borderline serious. If things got too deep into the woods, he would have to call an end to it, but for now he was enjoying this as much as he figured his counterpart was.

“Come closer, come closer! And is that a wand I saw? Shall we engage in the ancient art? Sounds like fun to me. But with the Forbidden Forest as our stage? What creatures could we possibly draw out from it’s shadowy depths as sparks fly? Hmm. Do wish to find out?”

Nero hadn't had a good sparring session, both in physical combat, but also a worthy one in the magical arts. He wasn't any slouch when it came to the Defense Against the Dark Arts, and even he would go as far as to say that he was probably the best out of House Ravenclaw at this point in time. He always tried to spur some of his housemates into taking a more active stance on understanding it, but they were more worried about memorizing and understanding the material then putting it into practical application. The only house that produced students with enough gumption to take him on were Gryffindor and Slytherin. Both had their own tactics, but from training with both, he had learned to balance between offense and defense. "Your a lively one. Thirst for violence have you?" he said mockingly.

“But I do so enjoy this tree. It’s quite so beautiful and I feel that after these past few minutes we have created a little bond between the two of us. Though if extenuating circumstances made it so I did have to part from her, there are so many other trees in this forest that I would have many others to keep me company."

He kept a close eye and ear out for any hints that might give him any clue as to where his now assumed adversary was. He heard the soft sounds of a quick move to his right and wheeled to follow the sound to where it came from. There were two trees that were relatively close to one another, and he figured who ever it was that was engaging him, was behind one, or the other. "Your a sneaky one, but there is more than one way to flush you out." he said flicking his wrist twice quickly, sending a curse down into the base of both trees sending up dirt and sparks alike with two satisfying snaps. The curses were nothing dangerous of course, would just have the same force as an average persons punch. Nero was hoping this would cause who ever it was to dodge from behind the tree to avoid getting hit with debris. He set a protective charm on himself in preparation for a return fire if there was going to be one. He wouldn't strike first against a girl, but he wouldn't have any qualms about retaliation once she did, if she did.