How to Handle the Ickles

Gwen had taken the job for her own reasons. She hadn't counted on there not being a full staff when she came. However, the school had brought with her position a number of its own problems, not the least of which was a shortage of staff. She had allowed Hogwarts professors here because it was good for the exchange program, and because they were useful.  However, now they were starting to get in the way. And for some godforsaken reason, she had even more students on the grounds. She didn't need them mucking up her plans any further. She actually hadn't been the one who had invited this bunch here, but nevertheless here they were. Nor had she designed the wards to keep them out, but outside they were.

She had summoned Julian. She remembered her last instruction to him as being, "Well, teach them something then! You're the Deputy Headmaster, Teach something. Anything. Teach them lifeskills or something. You're creative. Use some of it." Had he done something to be a part of this?  

She was more uncomfortable than she had been before she took this job.  She'd used her locket to summon some additional help. It wasn't advisable to use that locket unwisely, but she had used it now. He didn't like being interrupted, she well knew.  

She watched a curl of black smoke start to flow downward, out of the chimney, out of the fireplace and into the center of the tower office. The smoke seemed black and impregnable. She waited and watched it slowly take come together and take shape.

"Have a thing against sunlight, do you, Fawcett?" his tone was clipped and short. He closed his fist and opened it again, causing the leaded glass windows to fly open. He was rewarded with unhindered brilliant sunshine. "I like it.  What do you need me for?"

"I have all these new..."

"Ah yes. The ickles. They've arrived. Good," he said, with a smirk on his face.

"Students," she said, not particularly liking his diminishment of them. "And why can't I let them into the whole castle?"

"Are you daft?" he whirled on her. "They've been well schooled on all sorts of snobbery and nosiness. The last thing you need is them snooping through every tunnel and room and hallway and behind every stinking potted plant they can find. They get into what I let them into, nothing more."

"Then why did you bring them here?" she demanded.

"Because," he said simply, "I wanted them here. Is that all you needed?"

"No!" she was irked now. "There's already been a shift in energies. Someone's taken the ferry. Someone's coming."

"Good," his smile grew wider. "As I hoped."

"What do you mean, 'good'? What's good about it?"

"Where's your toady?" he asked, frowning, looking around the tower office and not seeing him.

"He'll be along in a moment," Gwen said. "What did you set me up for?"

"Dear Lady, you do worry about trifles," he sighed. "I suppose I'll have to handle this for you. Of course they sent the ferry. They don't have their bloody train anymore. They had to send the boat. They had nothing else. It was the obvious choice. I was counting on it. They'll make a little rescue attempt, and we'll let them. If I'm feeling generous, I might let them survive themselves."

"What?" she was horrified. "You baited them!" He turned on her, and then she saw, for the first time, what a snake he really was and how she'd fallen right into something bigger than she'd envisioned and someone far more dark than she could begin to control.  She was horrified. She hadn't wanted anyone innocent harmed in this, and now these children, all these children, were merely pawns. And the irony of it was that she was just as much his toady as Julian was hers. She was trapped, and she knew it.

"Don't look so surprised," he laughed, amused at her horror. "You couldn't possibly think that I would do this because I was so generous as to take up your cause without wanting something for myself." He sat down behind her desk as if he owned it himself. "So, what do you plan to do when the ferry comes?"

"I'll try to protect the students, that's what I'll do," she said defiantly.

"Oh, come now. You're not so good hearted that you're innocent in all this. Losing your nerve now, are we? Your wards here were pitiful, so I added my own. The little rescue party will have sufficient troubles of its own, but since I'm bored, I might as well stick around and toy with them. After all, they are intruders, are they not? Surely they had to expect the school would defend itself from attack." He laughed, amused at the thought of a bit of a game.

"So what are you going to do? Hold them hostage? Kill them? What will you do when you're done with them.? And what about the people on the ferry?"

"Why are you so concerned? They're all expendable. There are always more Brits where those came from. Human life is cheap, Fawcett. You obviously haven't played the game enough to know that."

"You're intolerable," she huffed.

"And you're a spineless old maid," he retorted, glaring at her. "Do you want this, or do you not? Frankly, it matters not because what matters now is what I want. Are we quite clear?"

@ julian milton

When Julian got Gwen's summons, he'd been sunning himself out in one of the courtyards.  He could only derive so much fun from winding up kiddies, especially since Gwen had such an aversion to actually doing anything interesting with them, so lately he'd resorted to treating the school more like a resort.

As he trudged up the stairs of Gwen's office, he could overhear voices.  Maybe she'd finally snapped.  That would be fun.

"Are we quite clear?" someone, a man, said as Julian pushed the door open.

"Ooh, someone's in trouble," he singsonged. "What's happening, peeps?"

The man looked up from Gwen's desk. "Come," he motioned Milton. " Your Headmistress is a prude," he said, "but I'm sure you've figured that out."

"I'm not a prude because I don't want you to kill children!" Gwen responded.

"You apparently signed up on the wrong side, then, my dear," he said, "because, frankly, their age is of no consequence to me. If they end up at the wrong place at the wrong time, then that's their bad luck, isn't it? Milton, so I see no one seems to appear the worse for wear yet. Well done. It is only a matter of time before we will have company at some point, and you seem to be a man who does enjoy a little 'recreation.' Might you be interested in setting loose some of the castle defense systems whenever they arrive? It surely wouldn't do, would it, for us not to do our part to defend the poor defenseless children from interlopers to the island, now, would it?" He cast Julian a bit of a mischievous grin. "Might that be something you'd like to join in on?"

"Do NOT kill anyone, Julian," Gwen said, glaring at him.

"Oh, by all means, don't kill anyone, Julian," he mocked her, imitating her. He looked at Julian, rolling his eyes. He had a feeling Julian understood this assignment far better than Fawcett did.

"Couldn't have that," Julian agreed, still wondering what the power at play between these two was. He didn't want to get on the wrong side of a wizarding duel.

But right now, the dude seemed to have the upper hand, if only because he was okay with killing kiddies. Refreshing. Julian himself wasn't exactly okay with killing children left and right the way this guy was, he at least needed a reason. Okay, he preferred to have a reason. He was a Ravenclaw, and he knew what hubris was.

"I wasn't going to kill anyone," he protested. "If the castle's defence system turns out to be slightly deadly and a few people just happen to get in the way, that's not my fault."

"Exactly," the man smiled at Milton. "At this point, they're pawns, nothing more. Of course, we do have to leave at least some of them alive, or we'll lose our bargaining chips. She's not going to get us more than a couple of quid at best, I'd wager." He gestured to Gwen. "You've burned too many bridges, Fawcett. Who would risk themselves or their pockets for you?"

"Look," Gwen said hostilely, "I asked you here. I can toss you out whenever I like." The man turned on her quickly.

"You don't get it, do you?" he asked quietly. "Let me explain it very clearly. Yes, you asked me here. That's true, but I own you--lock, stock, and barrel...."

"You do not!..." she began.

"Then try evicting me and see what happens--to you," he said coldly. "As I see it, you and Milton both work for me. Milton seems to be able to get with the program. Now, if you can't assimilate, I'll eliminate you. I needed you to let me in. Now, you'll both have to convince me I still need you. If you manage to carry out your little plan, Fawcett, then that's just a bonus in this, but it scarcely matters anymore. The plan now that matters is mine--and only mine."

"So this is about ransom then," she stated.

"Ransom? You think that's the idea? Hardly," he said. "You think with a small mind, small scale. There's more at stake than you know." He turned to Julian and handed him an old book off the shelf. "You might want to familiarize yourself with Chapter 7 in this old thing. Its the best existing record that I've found on the school's security systems. If, when our guests arrive, they activate some of these, well, its their problem. On the other hand, we certainly owe it to protect the poor unequipped ickles down there, even if we need to protect them from themselves, don't we?  There are also some very interesting bits in this one," he said, pulling an old scroll off a high shelf.

"What?" Gwen asked, frowning. "You've found more?"

"You're...at least six inches too short to have even seen this scroll," he shrugged. "Your lovely sister wouldn't have missed this one."  He watched her bristle and smiled, slightly amused. He handed the scroll to Julian. "Some fascinating things here, but the scroll was dusty, so who knows if they work anymore? Some drawings of some oubliettes outside in the courtyards, and some other surprises. Don't know if there are strange things down in those things or not. Haven't looked, honestly. Have fun. Might want to save a few of those things for the next go 'round. I'm guessing this won't be their last attempt."

Julian took the book and tucked it under his arm. He could read that later. Possibly while catching some rays in the courtyard. The scroll, however, he was more keen on checking out immediately. Carefully unrolling it... the illustrations seemed pretty useful.

The guy was right, there did seem to be oubliettes down there. Julian had always liked the concept of the oubliette. Ever since he'd seen Labyrinth as a kid.

Hey, he was probably the only muggleborn adult here. And furthermore, probably the only person who'd ever played Dungeons and Dragons. Oh, this could be fun.

"You ever heard of a Gelatinous Cube?" he idly asked.

"Actually, no," he replied, curious. "What are they? Are they any fun?" He was starting to like Milton. Fawcett was a prude, and she had at least a touch of a maternal instinct, it did appear. It was annoying. He had thought she was a colder fish than that.

"You need to learn a bit from Milton here," he told her. "Loosen up. No one's died--yet. And if someone does, its hardly your fault, is it?"

"No, it'll be yours!" she retorted.

"Yes, well, they'd have to catch me first, wouldn't they?" he laughed. "is it likely these little ickles will? I think not. They haven't even figured out how to melt a bit of ice. Milton, tell me more about this cube thing. Fawcett's a page behind you."