Posts by greatbear

[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]There was a bitter nip in the air when Bel set out on her evening rounds; it was the kind of chill that heralded the onset of winter, and marked the end of autumn. Still, the cold wasn't enough to deter the gremlin from her task, so the creature only spent a couple of moments shivering before she tugged her scarf around her neck a bit closer, and called on her fae magic to provide warmth. Without any further delay she set off, ducking through alleyways and darting down the hidden streets of the city as she made her way to her first port of call.

There had been a rise in demand for her services as a healer lately, meaning that Bel now had little time to spare between tending to one patient and another. While at first this occurrence had been little more than an irritant to the older gremlin (she'd dismissed this increase in injuries as a simple matter of more creatures being clumsy as the year stretched on), recently she'd been given reason to think otherwise. Rumours of a monster roaming the streets had finally reached her ears, the stories portraying a vicious beast whose attack would certainly match some of the injuries she'd seen. Bel suppressed the urge to glance behind her at the darkened alley from where she had wandered. These were dangerous times, with the threat of some new kind of monster on the loose only adding to perils the magical folk of the city faced every day.

The fae creature had only just shook herself free of those more morbid thoughts when a loud clattering sound came from one of the side streets to the left of her. Her head snapped around, yellow eyes narrowing as she pinpointed the source of the commotion; only a few metres from where she stood, two creatures were in the midst of a brawl, tumbling over each other and colliding with the alley wall while they remained locked in combat. After a couple of moments Bel was able to work out what one of the creatures was - a rather nasty looking wererat - but the other one brought her up short. What on earth was that thing? It wasn't an animal that Bel had ever seen, aside from in books and illustrations.

OOC: I hope this is okay, tell me if you want me to change anything c:
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Here is the urban magic thread c:

[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Looks good! Here's Nina's mini bio thing:

I was thinking they could be neighbours or something, so they'd see each other pretty frequently. Perhaps they went/go to school together?

As to how to start this off, hmm... perhaps your character has just come back from one of their first patrols, but Nina catches them sneaking around and forces your character to come up with some half-arsed explanation in order to cover up what they're doing? Or we could jump straight in with Paige rescuing Nina, haha. Or something else, I'm fine with whatever! I'm assuming that Paige has already been in the hero business for a little while, correct me if I'm wrong.
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]For a few moments more all Bel could do was stop and stare as the fight unfolded in front of her. Her eyes darted from one combatant to the other, and she found herself wincing as they tore (or burned, in the draconic creature's case) at each other with what seemed to be a mix of fury and desperation. Although the unknown creature was larger than the wererat, the brawl seemed to have reached some kind of stalemate, with neither of them gaining any ground or backing down.

The healer in Bel took over while the gremlin would have otherwise stood in shock at such a sight, and she soon found herself cataloguing the various scrapes and injuries that had been acquired during the fight; the draconic creature had suffered from a number of injuries that she could see, while the wererat seemed to be faring a little better, with the worst of its injuries being a burn mark. The sight of two beings in dire need of medical attention helped to ground the older gremlin somewhat, and she took a couple of steps forwards towards where the two were fighting. With a task to focus on, her mind began to run through a dozen different solutions to the problem that had been presented to her. How could she interrupt this altercation without anyone getting hurt?

Luckily, before she found reason to call upon her fae magic and separate the two, a different opportunity presented itself; upon being grabbed by the tail, the wererat was now trying to scramble away from its assailant rather than strike back. Quickly, Bel darted forwards and raised one clawed hand, her eyes shining gold for a moment while she called on her magic. The wererat was pushed away from its opponent, both of its own accord and thanks to Bel's helping hand.

The gremlin held her breath, hoping that that would be the end of it. The wererat still looked like it might strike back again. "Come on," she cried, "be off with you! Cease this pointless fighting at once!"
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Sounds good c: Do you want to start off, or shall I?

[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Ahaha, no worries c: Though I'm afraid I have to sleep now, so I'll post a reply in the morning.
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]For urban: I like to think that there would be a few places that only the magical folk of the city could enter/find... hidden shortcuts and alleys disguised with illusions, shops specifically catering to the fae, etc.
And yaass, I'm liking the Batman-inspired plots! I'm thinking that Bel is more the Alfred/mentor figure, and Paige is the one who goes out there and helps solve the problems with her sweet fae/halfling powers

And yea, Owl would be great for the Batgirl plot c: (assuming you mean court of owls haha)
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]It was late into the night by the time Nina had finally started to make her way back home after her shift at the garage; in fact, she couldn't even call it nighttime anymore, for a quick glance at her battered wristwatch revealed it to be some point in the early morning. Her head was down and her hood pulled up to partially hide her face, and it was only the thought of a warm bed at the end of her commute that encouraged her to move quickly.

The sky was still dark (no stars were visible, not with the amount of light pollution Gotham City created), and there was no sign of the morning sun creeping over the horizon, so Nina figured that she would be able to catch a few hours sleep before dawn forced her into action once more. The chill of the night spurred her onward, and it was with no small amount of relief that the familiar sight of her current place of residence came into view.

Normally the young adult would never have had a reason to stay at work for as long as she had, but some of Gotham's more 'charming' citizens had ensured that a later stay would be necessary. Nina had been tinkering with one of the older engines (her boss having kindly allowed her to stay past closing time to do so) when one of her colleagues had burst in, yelling about break-ins and vandals. It had taken the two of them a good few hours to clean up the mess that had been made outside of the garage, leaving the younger of the two workers with very little time to go home and sleep before the new day began.

Nina was pulled from her recollections when she reached the stairs leading up to her apartment, a strange sight catching her eye. Frowning, she paused, one foot hovering over the bottom step. Was that...? The thing that had captured her attention was not, in fact, a thing, but rather a person - which wasn't an odd occurrence in and of itself, were it not for their identity. "Paige," she called out, somewhat hesitantly, "is that you?"

OOC: Hope this is what you had in mind haha
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Aww, I'll look forward to that bit c: It's been years since I actually watched B+R, so I can't really remember my reaction... I'll have to re-watch it at some point, since I still have the dvd for it.

Nice, labyrinths are always fun to have in an rp c:
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Bel let out a sigh of relief when the wererat ran away, the defeated creature beating a hasty retreat rather than sticking around to fight some more. It had received some injuries during the fight, but none that were particularly life-threatening, so the gremlin was happy to let it go unchecked. The other combatant, on the other hand... they might need some more assistance, if her previous analysis was anything to go by.

This in mind, the healer turned her attention away from the retreating form of the wererat and back towards the other creature, her long ears twitching as it uttered an odd, half-growl sound. What it did next, however, Bel could honestly say she hadn't been expecting; it smiled. Without really thinking about it, she mirrored the action with a bemused smile of her own. It looked like it wasn't going to be attacking her any time soon, and the gremlin found herself releasing a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding, glad that she wouldn't likely have to defend herself today.

This still didn't stop her from moving forwards with a slight wariness - she didn't want to startle the stranger, after all - but it did help to calm her previous fears a bit. "Hello," she began, stopping a metre or so from where the creature stood, "Can you understand me? I mean you no harm - I hope you can say the same to me."
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]It would depend on which version of Barbara you're referring to when you say 'Barbara II' haha, her parentage seems to constantly change depending on the writer/media. I'd probably rule out Essen too, though.

In B+R wasn't she Alfred's niece? Or at least, her counterpart in that movie was Alfred's niece cx
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]using number 10 c:
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Paige's cheer cut through some of the weariness that had been weighing down Nina's mind, and the older teen found herself offering her friend a weary smile. No matter what mood she was in, it was always good to see the other teen, even if the circumstances of their meeting were unusual. Seeing Paige out of the house so late was very strange indeed. Nina made a mental note to ask them about it later, then allowed herself to be distracted by their question.

"Well, I've seen better nights," she replied, starting to walk up to where the other girl was standing, "Some kids were messing around at the garage... broke a few windows, dented a couple of the cars, scratched up the paintwork. I had to stay late to clear up the mess they left behind." A scowl flashed across her face for a couple of moments, before being replaced by the same resigned smile from earlier. There was no use getting worked up about something that was now behind her, after all.

Stopping once she'd almost reached the top of the stairs, she turned her attention away from where she was walking and back towards her friend. Another frown creased her forehead. "What brings you out here so late, anyway?" She tilted her head to one side slightly, then her smile widened into something a bit more humorous. "Were you waiting up for me?"
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]I'd be up for another urban magic plot c: Though just a heads up, I haven't done any werewolf specific plots before, so forgive me if I don't know the specifics for that kind of thing.

For the first plot, would you character be apprenticed to someone outside of his pack? Or were you wanting to combine that with your second point, and have my character be the new pack magic user who teaches the alpha some cool magical tricks?

I think I like the last plot most, though. Perhaps a group of magical-creature-hunters has came to the city, so your character's pack and my character (probably a shifter or something, as you suggested) band together to stand against the common enemy. Bonus points if your character and my character would usually be enemies, if it wasn't for this new threat to them both.
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Solaan listened as the elven stranger shared his misgivings, but ultimately found herself nodding in agreement to Coreon's and Arkhir's words. "Listen," she hissed to the drow once the others had left the bar, "We don't have time to argue about this! Coreon hasn't lead us astray before, so I see no reason why he, or any who he trusts, would intentionally do so now. Besides, you heard the innkeeper - this town can look after itself, if worst comes to worst. We can return here to ensure its safety, once the current threat has been dealt with."

With that, the sorceress turned from the elves and made her way towards the open door. She took a moment to look back over one shoulder and shoot Nyx a bemused smile, before following her other companions out of the tavern and into the early night. Solaan had always hated engaging in pointless debates, especially in situations when time was of the essence; there would have been no logic in staying and arguing with the stranger, so she was glad to be out in the open air where the temptation to do so was not there to give in to.

With a heavy sigh, she took a moment to settle her tumultuous thoughts before looking around for the rest of the party. For Greenhill's sake, she couldn't afford to dawdle any longer.

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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]The dragon's nod encouraged Bel even more, so she took another tentative step towards the creature. A quick glance at the stranger's stance revealed that she did not yet have their trust, so she made every movement slow and deliberate in an attempt to win it. A few of the beings that Bel had treated throughout her long life had been like this, so it was not an entirely alien experience for her; working with jumpy or potentially skittish creatures came with the job, and the healer had long since learned to deal with them with calm efficiency.

Now that she was close enough to properly catalogue the creatures injuries, the gremlin frowned. Some would only require simple healing magic to deal with, but some injuries (such as the wound on the dragon's wing) would require specific treatments and concoctions to correctly heal... and such treatments and concoctions, she only kept at home. This was, obviously, an issue. Bel did not have the dragon's trust, but she couldn't just leave it to suffer out in the chill of winter. No creature deserved that, no matter what they may or may not have done in the past. So, how could she convince them to come with her?

After a couple of moments pondering the problem, the answer began to form in the gremlin's mind. Raising one hand with a confident flourish, her eyes began to glow again. "Hold still,would you kindly?" she requested, her tone terse but steady, "This will only take a minute, and you'll feel better for it." Indeed, after only a couple of seconds had passed the effects of Bel's magic could already be seen on the stranger; the few cuts that had been bleeding stopped doing so, and quickly healed over to form new skin and scales.
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Many thanks, haha, I'm enjoying plotting with you c: Do you want to make the 'Among Wolves' thread, or should I? Though if you want me to, I'm afraid it'll have to wait until tomorrow.

I like the parallels you've made with the heroes threat and NBC! Its good to have a bit of an outline of the plot, too. Perhaps Paige ends up trying to take on one of the tougher members of the rogues gallery (her 'delivering presents' moment), and Nina and her father get caught up in things when the rogue tries to enact vengeance on Paige?
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[fancypost borderwidth=0px; width: 500px; font-family:arial; text-align:justify]Nina found herself nodding in agreement with her friend's comments about the City. It must have been one hell of a shock to the system, having to move to Gotham - of all places - after living the rest of their lives in a quiet country town. No other city was quite like Gotham, after all, and Nina still found herself shocked by some of the things that went on in her hometown, despite having lived there her whole life. Heroes and villains, crooks and monsters; all had warped the foundations of the city, and none would be forgotten in the minds of the civilian populace any time soon. She could hardly believe the changes that had occurred within the city's unspoken hierarchy, just within her own short lifetime.

The teen ceased her musings when her friend answered her question. "School stuff, huh?" she repeated, raising a sceptical eyebrow, "Well, you're more dedicated that I am! Though, don't tell your dad that - if he asks, I'll tell him that we were working on a project together, or something." She patted Paige reassuringly on the shoulder, hoping to convey in her actions what she hadn't explicitly said: their secrets would be safe with her.

Her mother had never been one to fuss over her (or say anything to her, really), but that didn't mean that she couldn't sympathise with her friend. It was important to have a bit of freedom in your life, regardless of the opinions of your parental figures.
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