Ethan Holler

Ethan couldn't help but smiles slightly at the interaction between Kerlina and Lib. She was kind of a hypocrite considering that she wasn't exactly normal herself. Then again, Kerlina didn't exactly help the matter as she loved to tease and get a rise out of his friend. Deciding to interrupt them, he raised his hands and stood between the girls.

"Well, you did a sweet job, Kerlina. This is going to be an awesome party. Got a date, Lib?" he asked, wriggling his eyebrows at her teasingly.

"Alright - Let's get to work, people." Divinia was now standing among the Circeans, her arm around Pippa with her brother and Xavier beside her. She tried not to smirk at the way they flirted, content with having successfully hooked them up. She cleared her throat and began speaking again. "Most of you will be helping run interference in one way or another. Those of you who don't can sit in the stands and wish you were half as good as the rest of us while we show you how the pros do it. Now, then. Azalia, Clarity, Aaron, Alexander, and Aurora - You can all watch pathetically from the stands."

She spoke in a haughty tone, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Xavier, you lead the first years in preventing outside aid whether from Professors or students. Pippa, you will take the second years to the North gate and handle Medea. I will take the others and Merlin." She purred, kissing Pippa's forehead. She had been planning for months to get rid of Atreyu...but since she and Pippa had gotten closer, she slowly began to stop caring about the Native American and the Aussie.

She still harbored hatred over the rejection, of course. But they were never the forefront of her thoughts anymore. Instead, she was always thinking of the next time she would get alone time with Pippa. A smile that was sweeter than usual graced her lips before she shook herself back to the current moment. "Sunday, you're with me." She was going to keep the little girl away from Xavier, already knowing full well how much the girl hated him. And she would hate to have to kill the girl for doing anything unsavory towards her best friend. Well, not completely. She had to admit that she got a sick high from hurting people. Especially people who hurt her or her loved ones.

She watched as a forest scene unfolded before them, soon making her way past the trees. Up in the stands she could hear the people cheering wildly, wondering what their reaction to Circe's position would be. For now, Circe remained invisible to the magick that displayed to the crowd what was going on as though it were a movie. She was holding Sunday's hand and leading her troops deeper into the forest until they came to a large oak tree gathering. "Everybody up!" She ordered, taking off into the nearest one so that she might lay in wait like a viper ready to strike.

---

Romeo sat with the other Professors and staff members in the highest.section just for them, Lamia on his lap. A smirk donned his face as he gripped her thighs, breathing on her neck. "Where have you been, my love?" He whispered lovingly into her ear, nipping her earlobe. While he had much love for Divinia and Xavier, Lamia was the first to hold his heart. She was his first lover and love, really. They had centuries of history together and tgose feelings had never changed. He once worried about how Lamia would feel that he shared his bed with Divinia at times; until he found out his two lovers were lovers.

Now that lead to some interesting scenes.

He had been sad that she left without word not quite so long ago and was rather upset that she had left the pompous Magick History teacher in charge instead of him. But she always had her reasons and that was good enough for him. Now that he really thought about it, he probably wasn't the best candidate anyways. Most likely, he would have worked them to death and Lamia wouldn't have liked that. But...maybe she would have been okay with it. Only the strong survive. He would have been doing them a huge favor. He was sure that the majority of the survivors if not all would be from Circe. Merlinites were too chivalrous and let their'morals' get in their way. Puckies were adaptors and thought quickly on their feet - They'd be fine. Medeans were haughty and strange. Arrogance would be their downfall; it always was. Circe was perfect. They didn't play by the rules and that's what would save them in life.

He tore himself from his thoughts and looked on to see Drago, Xavier, and the first years seeming to guard the staff area. Likely to prevent the aid of any of them. Good. He flashed them a smile from the throne he had conjured and cleared his throat, seeing the two covens ready. "Welcome to this year's semiannual Trial of the Covens! This year, you will not be playing sissy tag bullshit! This year you will be actually battling each other in a team effort. You have five hours or until the other team can no longer battle. The only rule is that the only magick allowed is your own. No aid from any staff member is allowed. Breaking this rule will result in the offending coven to be disqualified and banned from the Arena for the remainder of the year. You will be graded based on your use of magick, your ability to adapt, your ability to work as a team, and your strength and endurance. Let the Trials begin!" His voice boomed across the Arena as he smirked.

---

Cheveyo's date had gone exceptionally well. There was a lot of making out and gushing about the upcoming Trials. No matter which team won or lost, it was a win-win for the happy couple. They were going to watch chick flicks and eat things that were far from healthy all night. They hadn't specified if she was going to stay over for the night, but he was content to cross that bridge when he got to it. As he stood at the head of the Merlin coven behind the gates, he was still unable to remove the wide smile from his face as the forest began to emerge before them. He listened to Professor Guarini, nodding his head in agreement.

As soon as they were given the cue to begin, the gates opened for them to go forth and enter combat. Heath left his perch from Cheveyo's shoulder and took off into the forest to scout ahead along with a large number of the other Familiars. Cheveyo was among the first to take off into the forest on the hunt for Medeans. He had now gone from his normal mindset to the mindset of a warrior in the heat of battle. He craved victory in battle and wouldn't settle for anything but first place.

In his ears, he could hear spirits whispering soft warnings, Trees... to the trees. Watch the trees. Cheveyo gave a nod and glanced around at the trees.

From above, Heath gave a high pitched shrieking warning. Cheveyo frowned as he called out behind him, his voice loud. "Circe in the trees! " As soon as he called out, the dark student began to drop from the trees, forming a sort of blockade. Cheveyo acted quick, unafraid of Divinia's taunting smirk. Did she not realize they were absolutely surrounded by his element? It took only a snap of his fingers and a little willpower to cause the branches and various vines to snap down and snatch up most of them in his way while roots pinned down the others.

Leading a group, the Merlinite jumped, ducked, and dodged his way through the forest until he spotted four Medeans. He acted first, conjuring a sword. One of them, a redhead with a bad case of the freckles followed suit and they engaged in battle.

---

Drago was bored watching the Professors like a hawk and had soon turned his attention to the large television that they were looking at. Several smaller screens showing various action-packed scenes were playing, which really caught his interest. He watched the way Cheveyo fought, noticing that when the Native American finally put his sword into flesh, it was nonfatal and not very deep. Just enough to slow them down as he went on to the next opponent. Impressive. Chivalrous. But the way he wielded nature...why wasn't the boy in Puck? But he had heard about Cheveyo's spiritual abilities which seemed Medean...

Taking his eyes away from the screen, he noticed the one called Professor Kwan; He had as warned to watch out for her. Xavier had told him that she was rather arrogant, thinking herself superior to the other staff members. Which obviously wasn't true. If she was, she'd be the Headmistress. "This is a bit boring... " Drago loved battles and sportly things. But he preferred to be in the action rather than watching from afar.

---

DeAngelo enjoyed his time exploring with Cupid, though his owl kept giving him distasteful looks. They had run into his brother who was with two other guys, one of whom seemed completely enraptured by Drago. His brother sure did move fast... but so did he. But Cupid was so amazing. Yeah, it had been all of three hours that they had talked, but he was notorious for falling fast and hard.

He sat in the stands with the other Medea first years, of course with Brutus and Cupid. He watched on, there being a giant hovering television hologram that was obviously enchanted to be seen clearly from any side. He was amazed at all the conventional uses of magick that he hadn't even thought about, itching for classes to begin and long nights in the library. "This is pretty exciting. " He whispered slowly, sounding out each word as he spoke to Cupid.

---

Sasha had spent the last few hours in the library, researching harder than she ever had before. She meant to kill Dionysus. It wasn't that she hated all Olympians. They weren't all jerks, just a lot of the minor deities. She could be up there with them as a Goddess in another thousand years. She was going to. Until Dionysus decided to be king of the jerk offs! How dare he try to make her a groupie...

She growled just remembering it, her fists clenching as she restrained the weather from going south. She began to inhale and exhale slowly, closing her eyes and closing the book she was reading. She could kill Dionysus with ease. It was simply a matter of catching him and trapping him. There were very dark and ancient spells that could both summon and trap Olympian beings, She would have to get Lamia or Romeo for it.

Smirking with her newfound knowledge, she carried her books with her as she headed out to the Arena, straight for the staff area where she sat near Lamia and Romeo wordlessly.

Ever Daniels

Ever took a deep breath. She prayed she didn't run in to Aedan during this, especially after the time they had during study hall. She sat by the flag. She didn't bother with finding the coven's flag. Sure, they had to capture the flag on the other Coven too but still, she was an defensive magick user. Her powers could be offensivly but they worked best on defense.

As if called by her thoughts. She saw a Puck, a boy with bright blonde hair coming toward her. Ever touched her symbol covered hands to the ground. "Sorry, Louis." She said and the dirt below him shifted and he sunk into a hole. He squirmed in his subterranean prison. She sat back and waited for the next person to come for the flag.

---

[color]Kwan Yin Xong[/color]

Kwan Yin sat back in the staff seating, watching her students disperse into the forest. There was nothing she could really do to help them now. Not without getting them disqualified.
Oh Well.
She sat with her long legs crossed over the other, rocking her Menolos ever so slightly as she observed the Trials. She looked over as Sasha sat down. She didn't know why the Goddess thought she didn't like her. Sure, she could be childish but Kwan Yin couldn't careless.
Again, Ah well.

---

Sunday Cortez
Sunday took Divinia's hand as they walked through the forest. She had the impression Divinia was keeping an eye on her, otherwise she'd want Pippa by her side.
It was expected, especially the way Sunday nearly lost control when she went on about her frustration. She was still frustrated but she'll use it on the opponents.

Divinia had instructed her to keep to the trees, so Sunday sat in a high branch of an oak. Her violin tucked under her chin, and her bow in position. She watched as Cheveyo cut through a few of her Covenmates. Until Divinia gave the signal, Sunday would wait in silence, like a black widow.

---

Iain MacLean

Iain sat in the staff area, watching as the student began their trials. He didn't even flinch when Cheveyo cut into a Circean. Cheveyo was smart. He knew just where to attack so that they wouldn't bleed out and die. It would hurt like hell but that was the extent of it. Iain was proud of the Merlinite. He'd come so far from since he'd first arrived to the arrogant boy to the charming young man he was today. It was students like him that made Iain's long life worth living.

Alessandre Guarini

"Boring? It's embarrassing!" Alex sat besides Drago, watching the screens with a look of unimpressed disdain. He could see the children on the screens, as the battles opened with all sorts of magics, many of which Alex had heard of but never seen. The novelty wore off quickly though, as Alex watched the 'combat' that was going on. That was when he was reminded that most people his age truly were still children. He had thought magic might change that, but most of the kids battling on the screen fought like the kids they were.

"They fight like children! Don't get me wrong, there's some real skill in these battles, but it's all just a game to them! Either they're boldly charging into battle, or too scared to attack, even when they have perfect opportunities! Those that don't spare their enemies are psychopaths drawing out as much brutality as they can!" Alex couldn't help the scorn in his voice. Fighting, surviving, it wasn't a game. There were no 2nd chances. These 'games' weren't preparing these kids for a real fight, if anything it would leave them more vulnerable. He watched as Cheveyo engaged another enemy. This one was as sloppy as the other, and again Cheveyo was the victor. His blade ate flesh, and the Circean went down. Alex admired the skill Cheveyo displayed, and again waited for him to deliver the finishing blow. But he never did, instead moving on to the next opponent.

"Look at that. This is the 2nd opponent Cheveyo has downed, and again he leaves them be. You know the worst part? It works. As far as everyone's concerned, they're out. It's too much pain, so that's it, they're done. Pathetic. Cheveyo walks away, safe in his mercy and assurance that the fights done, and they do nothing. In a real fight, Cheveyo would be dead in an instant for daring to turn his back on his opponent."

The reason these battles were frustrating Alex so much was that he daren't not watch them. There was nearly half the students in the school, displaying their combat prowess and abilities. He'd be a fool not to learn what each student could do. One never knows who their next opponent will be. So he watched, noting every error and foolish move made. But he saw the skill too. Some of these students had potential to be dangerous. He still couldn't help but feel that they were sloppy though, and threw out too many openings and careless moves. But he was being unfair. They hadn't spent their entire lives training under Guilermo. Such things had never mattered to them. Sometimes Alex forgot that people could lead a life where they weren't constantly worried about their own survival.

Thinking of Guilermo was making Alex bitter. Between that and the unbearable sloppiness, Alex just couldn't cope with watching these 'games'. He'd wait until the weaklings had been routed out. The strong survive. Even in these games, that rule would still apply. That's when things would get interesting.

Alex looked around for something else to interest him till then. He glanced across at the professors... and for a moment his heart stopped, frozen in fear, shock and hate. He wanted to bolt as fast as he could, or to sneak away unnoticed, or to pounce and tear the man to pieces before he so much as had a chance to blink. But no, it wasn't him. The smile was wrong, almost genuine. The eyes were off too... the deathly paranoia that had always haunted deep inside was now gone. Even from here he could see the lack of tension in the mans body, the way he sat at ease. This wasn't Guilermo. But the resemblance was just... breath-taking.

He turned, and looked past Drago. "Hey, Xavier. That professor over there, with Lamia in his lap. What's his name? Full name?"

"You got a hole in your head, kid? They're not fighting to kill. Unfortunately, killing other students is frowned upon at this school. Ask Divinia about that." Romeo wasn't deaf, hearing Alessandre's rant from the whole twelve feet away. "If I had it my way, it would be a fight to the death. But, alas. Arena matches are only for testing battle skill and the such like. Damn new century and they're foolish rules." He sighed even as Lamia simply giggled. He then stood and set his lover down, striding to the young man. He looked all to familiar, causing a tug at his heart. He towered over the boy as his black Wolverine sped over. He reeks of Guilermo and his Magick. The Wolverine hissed - Romeo's brother never did like her.

"Hush." He told her before looking back at the boy. "Romeo Giuseppe Guarini."

Alessandre Guarini

Alex ignored Romeo's remark. That was flattery compared to Guilermo in a foul mood. Besides, with all the scars he'd gotten from those moods, who knew? He just might have a hole in his head after all.

"Agreed. There's a world of difference between fighting for your life and fighting for a game. Death changes things. But then, you'd know that well, wouldn't you? You'd have to, being Guilermo's little brother." As soon as the shock wore off, Alex knew who the vampire was. Guilermo talked about a brother sometimes, when he was in a particularly strange mood. Alex had only made the mistake of asking him about it once. Never again.

He stood up, now slightly taller than the vampire. That was wrong too. Guilermo had always been able to tower over Alex. In truth he had only been a couple inches taller than Alex, but it always felt like so much more. He scanned over Romeo's face briefly, and found more it to be more different than he thought. Guilermo's brother yes, but not his mirror image.

"Alessandre Alois Guarini. Guilermo's son. I suppose that makes you uncle Romeo. Excuse my... rant. You can imagine the ideas Guilermo had about death and battle."

Aedan McClellan

Aedan sighed as he walked through the forest. He really didn't like the thought of running into Ever during the Trials. He couldn't stand hurting her, though he knew she could definitely take care of herself. As he walked, he heard the crack of a twig and he immediately jumped to the side to see a Circe witch, smirking as she shot a nasty-looking purple curse at him. He dodge tot he side and raised his hands, causing a giant tree root to grow around her and bind her arms together.

"You let me go, you Merlin bastard! You think you're a Puck or something?" the witch growled. Aedan grinned.

"Actually, I think of myself as Hashirama," he stated as he turned to walk through the forest. The sooner Merlin won this, the more likely he wouldn't run into Ever. He hoped Ever wasn't guarding the flag this time, though.

He entered a clearing and saw her.

"Ah, shit. Can rough sex count as fighting?"

Karol Angelo

The healing professor sighed as he took a spot in the staff area. The students hadn't injured each other enough for his intervention yet, which he was grateful for. He remembered almost dying in one of his Trials when he attended Fae's Academy and he hoped that the school did not have a mortality this year. He glanced at Ian and nodded at Kwan in the distance.

"I am grateful Romeo allows us to monitor these fights."