The Inspection

[acciomod]

On the whole, the weather had been temperamental lately. One minute, it was absolutely bucketing it down, and the next, it was bright sunshine. The amount of rain had turned the ground into a muddy mess, but at least the tents provided perfectly adequate shelter, and a gazebo had been erected over the community dining table to protect everyone from the elements.

Despite the temperamental weather, however, it had been fairly warm throughout the past two weeks, so the chill in the air during dinner that evening was particularly noticeable, even before the dark, hooded figure by the Ministry's representative's desk had been seen.

Nervously, the Ministry representative approached the table.

"I'm afraid we have a visitor," he said, addressing everyone at the table and hoping that anyone not there could hear him. "This is a Dementor, one of the Guards at Azkaban. It's a high security prison. He's just here to, well, ensure that a certain escaped criminal isn't hiding amongst you.

"I don't expect he'll be here for more than an half an hour, so do try not to worry too much. They can make people rather, well... uncomfortable."

Bowing his head slightly, he left the Outsiders to their meal.

[And so, a Dementor is lurking around the camp, just in case one of the Outsiders is secretly Sirius Black. They're known to sap the happiness out of the environment, and - in cases where there are true horrors in someone's past - cause traumatic memories to resurface.

The chilly, depressed feeling can be lifted by the deliciousness of chocolate, though the Outsiders will need to discover this on their own. Good thing there's dessert.]

Comments

[songofsoaring]

[Link sat there staring into the space the Dementor occupied, his face frozen in an expressionless mask as he saw Zelda - the beautiful woman he loved unconditionally - hold her hand out for the ocarina so she could send him back in time. The single most unhappy moment of his life. Everything that had been wonderful about seeing her bled away into a cold lump of pain that felt physically confining.

The spell, such as it was, was broken by the question and Link looked over at the boy in purple. Giving himself a shake and pushing the hurt aside to focus on helping the other boy, the hero gave a small smile - sadness lingering in his eyes - and shrugged.]

Think of something more important.

[Like helping those who need it.]

[windseye]

[Something more important?

Stunned at the other boy's friendly response, Vaati smiled uneasily back at him, not feeling like himself at all. What was more important than getting back at the people he hated? He couldn't think of anything else he desired more...

But the more he thought about their jeering faces, the more he heard their mocking laughter, the worse he felt, and he stillcouldn't shake off that chilly feeling.

Damn that dementor.]

I'll try that then. If I can.

[Like hell if he could think of something sweeter than revenge. But he would have to try.]

[songofsoaring]

I'm sure you can.

[He said with confidence and leaned forward across the table.]

There's got to be plenty of things more important than whatever it's making you feel. Family, maybe? Friends? A goal you can not let yourself fail to achieve?

[windseye]

I don't do friends.

[The words were out before he could stop himself, and Vaati groaned when he realised exactly what he'd just said.

But it was true. Even so, the...honesty of his words shocked him. He wasn't normally one to let things slip like that.

As for a goal he couldn't let himself fail...well, he was thinking about it already, and what good was it doing him? It just made him feel even worse.]

[songofsoaring]

[Link didn't look at all offended by the statement. Some people didn't like the idea of having friends even when they had some.

He kept smiling and shrugged.]

Okay. So no friends. Probably no family then, either. That leaves a goal. Something that you cannot let yourself fail no matter how bad you feel right now. What goals do you have?

[windseye]

[Well, to put it simply....Vaati wanted power. He had been intent on searching for the Light Force back in Hyrule, and he doubted this boy would know what it meant...but still, something held him back from speaking about it. It made him feel strangely uneasy all of a sudden.]

Magic. I was looking for magic before I came here.

[Good job he was outside a school for 'Witchcraft and Wizardry' then.]

[songofsoaring]

[Link put his elbows up on the table and settled his chin in his hands as he gave a single, firm nod.]

Right. Is it the kind you can find here? If it is, then you can't let this feeling stop you before you find it when you're so close. If it isn't, then you really, really can't let the feelings stop you when you haven't even found where this magic is. So focus on that. Focus very, very hard on it and push that unhappy feeling away. That Dementor isn't going to stop you.

[windseye]

[Vaati was sure he couldn't find the magic here, but something about Link's words were...actually making him feel better? Which was an impressive feat, considering it was him they were talking about.

Not that many people had ever seen him like this.]

Of course it won't stop me.

[He paused, unsure what to say next.]

...thanks for that...

[His voice came out a lot quieter then, which was irritating- but still, he couldn't believe he was actually thanking someone.]