Meeting Mentors / Alastor Moody

[hellbourne]

Marlene wrapped her cloak around tighter as she walked down the main street of Hogsmeade, a small bit or parchment clutched between her pearly-white hands. She was here on business, of sorts - an arrangement by her father to help her prepare for the idea of a Wizarding War, which hung around all their heads like a soggy, grey cloud; not unlike the weather that day. As Marlene looked up to the sky, the rain started to pour down onto the empty village.

Picking up the pace, Marlene ran over to the stoop of the Three Broomsticks and looked down at the bit of parchment between her hands.

Marley,

Alastor Moody will be waiting for you in Hogsmeade at three o'clock.

Make me proud,
Father.

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She pressed her lips together in a worried manner; she was the only person in Hogsmeade as far as the eye could see. She dug into the pocket of her robes and gripped her wand tightly - was she in the middle of an ambush and just didn't know it yet? Almost panicking at the thought, she drew her wand out and flipped the hood of her travelling cloak down. She wanted to see her supposed attackers when they struck.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[tomcollins]

Hidden behind an Invisibility Cloak, under a Disillusionment Charm and around a corner, Alastor Moody watched the streets of Hogsmeade. His magical eye turned and swivelled in its socket as he searched the nearby buildings for signs of anything suspicious, just as he had done every five minutes for the last half-hour. There were Death Eaters in Hogwarts, after all, or Death Eaters in training at the very least, and the girl that he was here to meet would be a perfect target for the forces of the Dark Lord.

Alastor had known Henry McKinnon for nearly twenty-five years, ever since he became the man’s Mentor in the Auror program. Henry was a good friend, a better man to have at your back and treated Alastor with respect despite coming from a Pureblood family that had been in Gryffindor as far back as anyone could remember.

So when the man had stopped by his office and told him that his daughter was interested in being an Auror (like her father and his father and countless generations of McKinnons before that) and asked for him to give her some advice, Moody had been happy to agree. He hadn’t formally committed to anything, after all; he’d give her some advice, and maybe if she impressed him then he’d teach her a little to defend herself. For all that he was a fighter and a warrior, Alastor sometimes thought he could have been very happy as a teacher in another life.

Marlene McKinnon, Moody thought to himself, running down his mental list of things known; Gryffindor, Sixth Year, studious enough to be a Ravenclaw but with enough courage for three of her housemates, descended from a long line of Pureblood Aurors.

A flicker of movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention, and the focus of his near limitless field of vision shifted in a way that would have been vertiginous had Alastor not gotten used to it. He lowered his wand, a Blasting curse dying unsaid on his lips as he recognized Marlene from the photos all over her father’s office.

Watching the girl shifting nervously, Moody decided to take the opportunity presented to test her mettle. If he was to be giving this girl advice, and possible training beyond that, then it was important that he knew her at her weakest, not when she was trying to impress. ”Omoisugoshi,” He muttered, beginning a curse he’d learnt while travelling around Japan to learn from the Masters in Defence Against the Dark Arts who lived there; Shinto priests and yamabunta and stranger men. ”…soraosoroshii, kyoufushou, ozouzo…”

It was not a curse capable of any real harm on its own, except with prolonged use. All it did was incite nervousness and tension in the target, creating unease and magnifying existing fear. Eventually, it escalated into an overwhelming paranoia, but it was far from permanent; as soon as the spell was removed, any psychological effects vanished. Not a combat spell, save to unnerve an opponent and create an opening, far better as a tactical one built for situations like this one.

”…ojikerininaru.” Moody finished the chant and the subtle wand movement that accompanied it and settled back to wait. Her father said Marlene McKinnon wanted to be an Auror, and Moody had been asked to help her. Seeing how she reacted to fear would be a good start in his assessing whether she had what it would take, and deciding if he should help her along the way.

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[hellbourne]

Marlene looked down at the pocket-watch she had borrowed from Tatilda Brown that morning. The big hand clicked over to five minutes past three and Marlene couldn't help but wonder where Moody was. Had he forgotten? Marley furrowed her brow as she shoved the small thing back into her pocket.

Almost like a tidal wave of emotion hitting her all at once, Marley took a step back on the stoop and ran into the door, creating a loud thud. What on Earth was that? Marley brandished her wand out in front of her as her eyes darted around the place, looking for any signs of something alive.

"Who's there?" she spoke in a low, firm voice. Were the Dark Forces at work here? Was this a trap?! Her mind started to work over time and Marley had to put a hand over her eye to try and stable herself. "Wh - who's th - there?" she blundered again, losing her nerve. Marley sank back into the door, leaning against it for support.

A cold wash of dread seeped over her. They had her father locked up and forced him to send that letter. Her hands started to shake violently and she could feel a swell of hot tears coming on, but Marlene forced the tears back. She was only guessing - how could she know it was real?

No. Marley leapt off the door and took her hand away from her eye. She was just being silly! Her brown furrowed and her jaw clenched tight, she kept her wand out in front of her as she moved away slowly from the stoop and sidled up against the cobble-stoned wall. She could fight this paranoia off; and she knew it.

[/justify]

[ ooc: it's so so so crap. and consquently, i am so so so sorry. ]

[tomcollins]

Moody watched, impressed despite himself as Marlene managed to stand up to the force of his spell long enough to follow basic Auror combat protocol; when in doubt, get armed, get cautious and get searching. Soon enough, however, her nerve broke and Alastor could see her starting to fall apart, getting caught up in thinking and worrying instead of simply riding out the fear and remaining ready to react.

It was an understandable enough mistake, especially for someone with very little training, and given that her initial reaction had been solid, Moody decided that he had seen enough and prepared to lift the spell before pausing. A sudden feeling that there was more yet to see niggled at the back of his mind, and so he re-lowered his wand and continued to watch.

As he watched the young woman continue to descend into self-doubt and fear, Alastor started to suspect that his feeling had just been a stray thought and not a valid hunch as he’d thought. Then, before his disbelieving eyes, a girl who’d hadn’t even graduated from Hogwarts yet began to throw off an extremely potent Japanese curse that she didn’t even know she was under.

Moody let out a low whistle of amazement and made a quick pass of his wand through the air to remove the curse, then cancelled his Disillusionment charm and pulled down the hood of his Invisibility Cloak. He wasn’t sure if it was her McKinnon blood or something about the girl herself, but after what he’d just seen, Alastor Moody was willing to stake his reputation on Marlene becoming a great Auror.

Moody stepped around the corner and headed towards her, wand ready in case he startled her enough to start throwing curses around. No need to leave himself needlessly exposed to potential (even likely) friendly fire. There were quite enough Dark Wizards trying to kill him without letting frightened Auror candidates take free pot-shots at him, after all.

”Marlene McKinnon?” Alastor stepped towards her and extended his free hand, ”Alastor Moody. Your father said you’d be expecting me?”

[hellbourne]

Marlene backed up against the wall and closed her eyes for a moment. Battling against the paranoia in her mind was no way for a girl like her to be, especially when she was meeting an important friend of her father's. A voice broke the silence, and consequently, the paranoia and fear as well.

"Yes," she said, standing up straighter and turning to face the man. "That's me." She bit her lip - well, Moody was a bit different than she had expected. It was hard not to stare at the magical, swivelling eye. "Mr. Moody, thank you for meeting me here today," she smiled her best smile and held out her hand for Moody to shake.

It seemed like what her father had told her about Moody was true. He definitely looked battleworn - but, at least he still had most of his nose in tact. Another one of their Auror friends had nothing left to show but a small bit of cartilage. He had a look of gruffness about him, accompanied by a long, brown trenchcoat with a lot of pockets.

"My father said that you are a very accomplished Auror," she began, trying to win him over with some of the pleasantries, "and you may be able to help me on my own quest to become one, as well."

She wondered where they would go, and what kind of things they would do in their meeting today. Or whether today was just simply for them to meet, rather than get down to business. Either way, it was very nice of Alastor Moody to take time out of his day to help her on her quest, especially when there were so many Dark Wizards about. The Wizarding War was coming, and Marlene wanted to be ready for when it hit.

[/justify]

[tomcollins]

As Marlene stepped forward and took his hand, Alastor found himself nodding in approval. The girl had a good strong grip and seemed unphased by his various scars and his magical eye, which Moody privately admitted was probably quite intimidating. Then again, as the daughter of an Auror, she would certainly have seen retirees with far worse wounds than him, which would probably explain her lack of hesitation. Alastor’s lip curled into something of a smile as the Gryffindor began trying to flatter him through the basic social pleasantries. It was a very familiar and transparent technique for anyone who’d grown up in the Slytherin commonroom, but Moody’s former House affiliation, along with his blood status was not particularly well known.

”Hardly very accomplished, girl,” He cut her off, ”I just do what needs to be done. Same as any other Auror. Only difference is that I’ve gotten luckier, though you wouldn’t think it to look at me.”

Moody’s let his false eye roam around the street as it willed as his real one stayed fixed on Marlene, trying to put together an accurate first impression while he ran through what he already knew. respected pureblood family; long line of Aurors, brave and courageous even beyond the house average, likelihood of recklessness and stubbornness, studious and intelligent, possible tendencies towards overanalysis and combat paralysis… The analytical part of his brain continued to tick away as he continued,

”And as for the second matter, that’s up to you. All I promised your father was advice, having gotten your measure, I think I’ll offer a little more than that.” Pulling out his hipflask and taking a swig, he grinned at her. ”Question is what you want? You want advice on Auroring? Self-defence lessons to help you survive the gathering storm? Looking to get involved even beyond the Ministerial level?”

Moody had always thought that the drinking age was a daft idea, so he offered her the hipflask. If she was old enough to want to fight and for him to teach, he privately thought to himself, then she was old enough to drink, and her father would in all likelihood agree.

”I like you. You seem like you’ve got the makings of a fine Auror with plenty of potential. But until you tell me what you want out of these lessons, there’s only so much help I can be.”

[hellbourne]

Her father, being an Auror, had a few scars from battles he had fought. But looking at Alastor Moody, or 'Mad-Eye', as some called him, was a completely different experience. Marlene had known many Aurors in her short life, mostly through her father and uncles, but Moody had the most scars out of all of them. In her eyes, it made him seem that bit more accomplished, as from all the scars, he was willing to put more of himself on the line to save others. She didn't say any of this out loud, but instead, merely thought it, as she wasn't sure what to say back to one of the greatest respected Aurors in all of the Wizarding World.

She thought about his offer. What was it that she really wanted from seeing him? It was her father, afterall, who had set up this meeting with Moody - and mostly for Marlene's own safety. "Advice, mostly," she said after a bit of deliberation, "although, I would not turn down any self-defence lessons offered." She was trying to remain polite and not too demanding - afterall, with such a gathering storm of destruction happening as the two of them spoke, Moody had a lot more to handle than just Marlene.

She put up her hand politely, as if to say no to Moody's offer of a drink. "No, thankyou," she smiled. If she was going to talk to Moody today, or perhaps even learn things off him, she wanted to be completely sound.

The two of them walked up the lane-way of Hogsmeade, stopping outside the Three Broomsticks. "Well, Mr. Moody, it really just all depends on what you would like to offer. I understand the Auror office is rather busy at this point in time and it must be a bit hard for someone of your rank to be away, but if you have time for a butterbeer and any tips on self-defence, it would definitely be gladly appreciated." Marlene smiled and pulled open the door to the Three Broomsticks for Moody.

Honestly, it was nice of him to take time out of his day to see her at all. And nevermind the brief moment of paranoia Marlene had felt before - it was probably just a weak moment for her. She was just glad that Moody was not there to see her fall apart like that!

[tomcollins]

[OOC - sorry it's so short and Sh*t]

”It all depends on what you plan to do with it as to what I’m willing to offer, doesn’t it?” Moody said, ”The office may be busy, but I always have time for someone who’s going to use what I teach them.” He appreciated that Marlene didn’t give a flippant answer; that she thought about it and took into consideration the state of the world and his job. Alastor was starting to think that she might be a prime candidate for the Order, but that decision would have to wait on him getting to know her a little better.

Stepping into the Three Broomsticks, Moody took the door and gestured Marlene inside before asking: ”Would you prefer to talk in the bar or upstairs? I can ensure security either way; it’s all about what you’d be more comfortable with.”

Pulling out his hipflask and taking another sip, he considered what she’d said about self-defence lessons earlier. Given the nature of the times, doing something like that at Hogwarts for the students didn’t seem like a half-bad idea. Putting it out of his mind to consider later, Alastor stared at Marlene expectantly and waited for an answer.

[/justify]

[hellbourne]

Marlene frowned, deep in thought. Moody's answer was very wel thought out and Marlene didn't know quite what to make of it. She thanked Moody for holding the door for her as she stepped through, shrugging out of her jacket and folding it over her arm. "Upstairs would be lovely," she smiled, replying to Moody's question.

As the two made their way up the staircase, Marlene thought long and hard about a solution to the circle that her and Alastor Moody seemed to be going in. They both wanted the same outcome, it seemed: for Marlene to be well-prepared, and Marlene could see two ways of doing it. One, private lessons. It would ensure that Marlene herself was prepared for her expected joining of the Order of the Phoenix. And two, Moody could provide self-defence lessons for the population of Hogwarts.

As the two acquaintances sat down at a rough wooden table, Marlene bit her lip and took a deep breath. "Mr. Moody," she started, the confidence rising in her voice, "Time is valuable in this day and age, and I think I may have a solution for out little dilemma."

As the waitress came around asking for drink orders, Marlene asked for a butterbeer. Her attention soon focused back onto Moody as soon as the waitress left. "What would you say to doing a self-defence seminar?" She raised her eyebrows as she crossed her arms on the table, wondering and waiting for Moody's answer. "Not just for my benefit, but for those students at Hogwarts who too wish to join the Order and learn from one of the greatest."

All she had to do now was wait. Firstly, for her butterbeer to arrive, and secondly, to hear Moody's answer.

[/justify]

[tomcollins]

As he clomped up the stairs ahead of Marlene – most experienced wands at the front, second at the back, vulnerable in the middle ran his mental checklist – Moody’s magical eye swivelled spasmodically, checking every upstairs room, closet and drawer for any sign of the lurid green aura of Dark magic before he expanded his gaze to encompass the bottom floor of the Three Broomsticks and all rooms with windows facing towards him.

Pausing at the top of the stairs to allow Marlene to chose the room, Moody double and triple-checked it with an array of spells and a brief glance at his day-to-day collection of Dark Detectors before opening the door for her. Shutting it behind him, he began to pace around the room and layer spells of silence and subtlety and safety and secrecy, covering every surface and gap in a practically impenetrable – no such thing as the perfect defence he reminded himself – labyrinth of spells and incantations.

As he sat down opposite Marlene and laid his cane to one side, Moody nodded at the waitress to indicate that he wouldn’t need anything and then pulled out a Foe Glass, floated it up to hang above the door and Resized it to its usual three foot diameter. Fixing his magical eye on its surface and keeping a careful watch for shadowy movement, he listened attentively as Marlene outlined what seemed to him to be the perfect solution to their dilemma.

As she crossed her arms on the table Alastor knew that Marlene was waiting for his answer, but elected to wait until the waitress had been and gone with her butterbeer before answering the question. Absently scanning her drink for poisons or Potions and sealing the door with a trio of specialized Imperturbable charms, Moody took a swig from his hipflask, then a deep breath.

”Aye, lass,” He said with an impressed smile, ”And a ruddy good solution it is too. Teach a self-defence seminar to the students of Hogwarts. Next best thing to teaching you lot meself, though young Dawlish is a bloody fine Auror – trained him myself; one of the best. If I give you the crude tools then let him polish it up properly –“ Alastor took another swig. ”A fine idea, that it is, lassie. A fine idea.”

Moody’s magical eye swirled around for a moment – no possibility of significant enemy movement in less than half a minute – and stared Marlene down as his smile widened into a grin. ”However, ye’ll be needing more than group classes, unless I miss my mark – that is, unless the words Order of the Phoenix dun’ mean a thing to ye? So,” He said, watching closely, gauging her reaction, ”it’s my thought ye’ll be getting private lessons as well, almost a minor Apprenticeship, if ye will, until ye graduate and Albus and I think ye’re old and canny enough to be Initiated. 'Tain't a command though, jest a thought, mind.”

Turning his gaze back on the Foeglass and deliberately away from the young woman to give Marlene a moment to consider her answer, Moody asked;

”Thoughts?”

[/justify]

[hellbourne]

As Marlene took her seat at the table, she looked on as Moody performed a range of protective spells and charms in order to keep the two of them safe. She knew that the times were getting darker and people were having to watch their every move, but the effort that Moody had put into ensuring their safety was astounding. Eventually, he took the seat opposite and the waitress came by with Marlene's butterbeer.

She smiled. "Yes," she said, impressed. "I haven't had Professor Dawlish as a teacher yet - rumour is he starts on Monday, but if he was taught and trained by you, I'm sure he's going to be excellent." This was a nice change - the last Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher they had wasn't exactly one of the most competent teachers. There were rumours of the job being cursed, but Marlene was sure that they were rumours and nothing more. After all, you couldn't believe everything you heard.

Marlene was taken aback. The Order of the Phoenix! She knew the name and the purpose, as her father, mother, and most of her uncles were all apart of the group. But as for the rest, Marlene knew next to nothing. Her parents were sworn to secrecy on everything that happened within the headquarter walls, but deep in her heart she knew that one day she would end up fighting alongside them in the Order of the Phoenix. "Private lessons," she mused, taking another sip out of her butterbeer. "That does sound wonderful." She was almost off in a daydream, not noticing that Moody had turned his back to look in the foeglass.

"I accept," she said after a moment's silence. "When do we start?" She asked, the excitement levels rising in her voice. She knew that next year, as soon as she turned seventeen, she could join the Order - and if she was prepared in time, she would definitely be on their doorstep as soon as she was of age.

[/justify]

[tomcollins]

Moody grinned at Marlene’s surprise, watching the play of emotion across her face with amusement – shock, pride, determination, excitement-. Usually it was Order policy to keep as secretive and under-the-radar as possible, but as one of the major recruiters Moody had a dispensation from Albus to speak freely to any potential candidates. And from what he knew of her father and what he’d seen of her tonight, Alastor thought Marlene would be a fine addition.

”When do we start?” Moody repeated, almost to himself, ”Ah would say reet now, but ye’ll be needing to get back to school fer classes soon, I’d be thinkin’. Tha’ being the case, shall we meet this time next week in the Entrance Hall. Would tha’ be agreeable to ye?”

He took another sip from his hipflask then turned his gaze back on to Marlene.

”Could I ask a favour of ye, lass? I’ll advertise this business of teaching self-defence of Hogwarts in the Daily Prophet, o’ course. But ah’d surely appreciate it if ye could spread the word ‘round and let the students know,”

[ooc – where’d you wanna take this one? Keep going and start a DaDA lesson or do something else or wrap it up and start something else?]

[hellbourne]

Marlene didn't need to take any time to think about his offer. "That sounds perfect." she smiled warmly. This time, a week from now, Marlene would be well on her way to becoming an Auror and joining the Order of the Phoenix. It was all she ever wanted.

"Of course. I'll ask if I can put up the information on the house boards." That wouldn't be too hard. Just talking to the heads of houses; should be no problem at all.

And with that, it seemed like Marlene and Moody's time was up. She had classes to attend to, after all, and it would take roughly twenty minutes to get back to Hogwarts. "Mr. Moody," Marlene said, sticking her hand out for the rough man to shake. "It's been a pleasure."

[/justify]

[ ooc: a new thread sounds good! i'll move this one to the archives. ]