Dark Moon Enchantments ~ July 2018

Taddeo had climbed out of the grate to an unused storefront, having taken the Floo from his home in France to Russia. Why was he here, you ask? Why, he was en route to visit his sister of course! That explained why greenish eyes took in the sight of boarded-up windows and a ray of sunlight or two, not to mention a lot of disturbed furniture and dust.

The teenager sneezed, causing soot and other related debris to be shaken from his hair. A search through his pockets revealed a tissue and a soot brush, the latter apparently slipped into his jacket by his mother. Taddeo chuckled lightly and shook his head before stepping out of the dilapidated store and into the afternoon light.

* * * *

A faint tinkling of a bell sounded as Taddeo entered his sister's store. The modern yet goth appearance of the way Kiara kept things always intrigued him. Before fully entering, the lad gave his jacket and jeans one more shakedown to get rid of any dust or dirt he may have missed. He didn't want to look like he'd just come from playing in a sandbox.

Looking around, it seemed as though his sister wasn't in. But yet... the door wasn't locked. Strange. Maybe she was in the back of the shop? Perhaps she needed someone to watch the storefront for her while she was back there... 'Well, I think I can handle that until she gets in,' Taddeo mused to himself, shoving his hands in his pockets and taking another general glance around the place. Several of the items on the shelves looked rather interesting...

And one was on the counter, probably far from its designated shelf. Tad approached the counter, sights set on the ring just lying there. It looked rather old, with an expensive-looking opal inlaid in the center. He took several moments contemplating where the ring had been placed initially.

Seeing an open spot on one of the shelves, and assuming that was where the item belonged, Taddeo withdrew a hand from his pocket to reach for the ring...

Kiara was not happy as she talked to a friend of hers London, Beka..

“It was ridicules Beka, first he gives me all these things to enchant and then he comes back and says he doesn’t have the money to pay for all of it except one cursed ring, I am going to with hold the items and put them up for general sale… he was such a little punk to, swore at me for not giving him a chance to pay for them… I don’t know what he was smoking, honestly” Kiara said practically fuming. She was not having a good day.. Her back was hurting as usual, and she had not slept well the day before, so she was a tad grouchy.

Beka chucked, “ You seem to have a knack for costumers as I do with guys Ara” she said amused.

Kiara shook her head, “ Not funny Beka, usually I have professional costumers…’ she paused a moment, “Well not today anyway” she said with a sigh. “I will send you a picture of what the kid looks like if you are ever as unfortunate as I should he try and do business with you” she said.

Beka nodded over the Floo, “I’ll keep a eye out Ara, he won’t pull the same stunt over on me” she said with a wink.

Kiara nodded “ Good..” then she heard the bell of front door go off. “Got to go Beka Costumer here.. I will talk to you later” she said pulling away form the floo.

“Right Good luck Ara!” said Beka as she to left the floo.

Kiara stood straightened out her robes walked out into the door that led to the store front. She recognised her little brother right away, then her attention went to the object he seemed interested in. Her blood ran cold as she recognised the cursed ring she had enchanted or the punk only hours before. The ring had some very nasty curses on it, very painful ones. One made your skin feel like it was being eating alive, another made your blood pressure go up to dangerous levels, and the third caused the illusion of spiders and snakes biting into you. None of these of course she would ever wish on anyone, especially Tad, her kid brother.

“Taddeo Mangus Don’t touch that” she yelled in fright as she quickly ran up to her brother and grabbed his arm, while using her other covered arm to push the cursed ring out of the way. She could not let her brother touch it for it was made to be skin touch activated, the moment it touched his skin the results would be immediate.

Anger welded up in her at the punk that left the ring on the counter for anyone to touch, this ring could kill some one of they were not careful. If she ever saw that little idiot again she would curse him from here to Alaska.

Taddeo jumped at the shriek and being grabbed by the arm, resisting Kiara’s tug briefly. His eyes were wide in a combination of surprise and fright. “But...” was about all he could say in his stunned state. “Alright. ... But I was just tryin’ to help ya out, Kia.” The teenager was feeling a bit awkward right about now.

“So, um... what’s with the ring, anyway, sis?” he asked, not quite sure where to take the conversation from here. Taddeo stuffed the hand not being restrained in his pocket. The only things he could think of were either that it was heavily protected or someone had asked her to take a curse or something off of it.

Kiara let go of Tad's arm with a sigh, she felt a ping of guilt for yelling at him as she had, He hadn't done anything wrong after all, but the thought of him being cursed by the ring had scared her. She was protective of her family, if Tad had been cursed in her own shop right under her nose, she would not be able to forgive her self.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she took out a glove and covered her hand to pick up the ring in question.

" I am sorry Tad, I know... I am not mad, I know you only wanted to help" she said as her eyes went to the ring in her gloved hand.

She looked at Tad briefly at his question, "It has some rather unpleasnt curses on it Tad, a.... bothersom costumer must have left it here after he took off... It wasn't supposed to be left of the counter for anyone to touch... merely touching this ring with your bare skin will casue tortureous effects" she explained as she floated the ring in to a sheilded cabnet.

"Word of advice Tad... If there is ever an Item on the counter and you don't know what it does don't to touch it. You'll save me form having another panic attact" she said this time put her hand on his shoulder.

It did cross her mind the he might be curious as to why she has such a dark curse placed on the ring. She was not looking forward to that conversation, one of her fears was her family would reject her if they found out about her exploration in darker side of magic...

Once Taddeo was free from Kiara’s grip, the teen crammed this hand into a pocket as well. It was just something he did when he wasn’t quite sure how to act, and in this situation he really had no idea what to do. Plus, with his hands in his pockets he wouldn’t be tempted to reach out and touch the next random thing to catch his eye.

He watched as she made sure to cover her bare hand with a glove, then nodded after she spoke. The teenager let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. A strand of hair fell into his eyes. Normally, he liked the image such styling created. However, he hadn’t intended for it to do that and thus this time it was annoying. But he would leave it like that. After all, he was the one that encouraged the locks of hair to swing that way.

Greenish eyes blinked in shock and surprise as Kiara told him a bit about why she’d reacted the way she did. How had the ring come to be cursed? Had the troublesome customer come to her to take the enchantments off... or put them on? Surely she wouldn’t do the latter... not with their father being an auror. Unless... well, that would explain why her husband was a bit on the creepy side. But, that seemed a bit far-fetched to him.

As the ring was levitated to a special cabinet, Taddeo almost thought he saw an ominous glint in the stone inlaid upon the metal band. “Right. Sorry...” he apologized again even though he’d been told it was fine, smiling a small smile when Kiara placed her hand on his shoulder. However, his mind was too focused on questions than the functions needed to smile any wider.

“If I can ask... why’s there a dark curse on the ring, anyway? Did the person that left it want you to remove it?” he asked curiously, keeping the tone of his voice neither too keenly interested in or severely opposed to his sister’s choice of clientele. Pure, simplistic curiosity.

Kiara sighed when he asked the question she has feared his would ask, she thought about simply lieing to him, but then thought better of it. Tad was a smart kid, he would put it together that things didn't add up. Then she would be in a worse spot then she was right now for lieing to him about it.

"Tad... umm it is rather complicated.. But..." she trailed off thinking about the word she was going to use. She loved her baby brother, it would devesate her if Tad rejected her, she rather liked where there relationship was, she rather enjoyed his company and he was a good kid to be around. Plus she couldn't forget about Tatiana.

Tatiana simply adored Tad, and Tad was great at badysitting her when she was at work or if Sevastyan got called away. Tad was great with her, and would be unhappy as well if they had to find someone else to watch her. Which would also be bothersom.. since she and Sevastyan trusted very few people to take care of there little girl.

Sighing she carefully picked the words to use.

"Tad,... I enchanted the Ring, I put the curses on it myself" she said quietly.

"Please Tad understand, I don't do it out of malice or anger, it is apart of the business, It is what I do enchant things and sometimes it comes down to the darker side of things. I don't do it to be evil, you know me won't harm anyone unless I have to in defence" she sad trying to quarll any fears or doubts Tad might have about her doing dark arts.

Taddeo tilted his head to the side, confused as to his sister’s hesitance. Complicated... that was a word a lot of people used to describe a situation they either didn’t want someone to know about or couldn’t really explain. He wondered which of the two it was for Kiara. Tad felt he could tell his eldest sister nearly anything and she would understand. Would the same hold true in reverse?

Confusion knitted his brows at the truth... she had placed the curses on the ring. He supposed there were reasons people would put bad magics on stuff, but he’d always thought people did that kind of thing on their own.

The young man nodded at her further explanation. It made sense to him: as Kiara had said, she enchanted things. She couldn’t help it if her clients wanted things that had dark arts on it. His sister would’ve had to learn how to do that stuff if she wanted the person’s business. “I know, Kia, don’t worry... but how do you put dark magic on things and not get caught?” he replied, and then asked, curiosity and worry contorting his features, and his voice. “Or does Dad know and tries to make sure you’re not suspected and stuff?”

Kiara sighed in some relief, when he said he understood, but the next part of the question made her bit her lip.

"Very carefully Tad.... I make sure any one who leaves this shop can't say where he got the enchanments from... blood oaths of silents are handy things" she said quietly.

She paled slightly and sighed at his next question, "No Tad he doesn't know, and I don't plan on him ever finding out. I wouldn't want him to cover for me Tad, If Merlin forbid I were ever to be caught and it was found out Father knew and actually helped me, he could get in trouble to. It is better he remains blissfully unaware, of my darker life" she said.

Sighing once again she looked at her brother, what was she to do with him now that he knew her secret?

Everyone else who knew was under blood oath not to tell, but this was Tad her baby brother... She couldn't make her self ask him the make a blood oath, is was hardly a comfortable process. And she had pretty much dropped a bom shell on him, could she expect him to keep it all to himself?

"Alright Tad, becasue you are my brother, you have the rare privliage of not having to take a blood oath, but promise me you will not breathe a word of this to anyone, if not for my sake but for theres. If you need to talk to someone about this at anytime talk to me or Sevastyan okay? I won't ask you to bottle it all up" she said with a smile on her face and she patted his shoulder.

"I am sorry you are involved in this Tad, this was something I never intended to happen" she said, a bit of guilt lining her voice, to have placed a burden on his shoulders.

Tad had heard that in the Muggle world, lip biting was a sign of guilt. Then again, it had been in a work of fiction. A 'detective story' if he remembered right. Was it any wonder that he suddenly worried about his sister upon her expression? He could've just asked very much the wrong question. Sevastyan, his brother-in-law, didn't really like it when he asked a lot of questions.

Brown-blond eyebrows rose in surprise and... something else - fascination perhaps? - at the phrase 'blood oaths'. The teen was well aware that was powerful magic. He nodded, and wondered now with more than a little trepidation if he would have to swear to one. Particularly since he would at some point like to go back home...

Hazel eyes blinked upon their owner's hearing that their father didn't know, though Taddeo supposed it made sense. Abraxas Magnus often busted those caught doing Dark Arts, and tended to take staying away from such to as keen a level as some of his muggleborn friends' parents lectured about drugs and alcohol. Or, at least, that was this young man's take on it. Taddeo nodded vigorously to her reasoning. It made absolutely perfect sense to him, but then again he watched a lot of crime dramas and cop shows on the muggle television. If someone in their father's position learned he knew something crucial to a case... it could cost him his career, and Merlin only knows how long Abraxas had been an auror for!

Taddeo was pulled from his thoughts by Kiara's sigh, and noticed she happened to be looking at him with what he perceived as a critical expression. Would she make him take the oath? Did she trust or distrust him? What if she thought he'd let her down - one of the teen's worst fears?

What was an even scarier thought was: what if in trying not to let Kiara down... he did?!

A half sigh of relief escaped him at her decision. Taddeo wasn't certain if taking a blood oath would hurt, but he imagined it would have to hurt a little in order to get the blood. The young man shifted his weight from one foot to another as he listened to his sister. "Of course I promise, Kia... I don't want you or dad to get into trouble," he replied with a slight undertone of nervousness at the mere thought of either relative in legal danger. His first impulse was to ask incredulously if Sevastyan really knew about this too, but thought better of it. Of course he would know, sharing a house with her! "You... you're sure he wouldn't mind me talking to him about it, too? Sometimes he's a little... funny... about questions. No offense."

Despite his nervousness about the potential trouble Kiara could get into, and risking Sevastyan's irritation, Taddeo smiled at her expression and the pat on his shoulder.

Discomfort clearly crossed his face at her next statement. If it weren't for him, he wouldn't be involved now. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't be feeling guilty. "It's alright, Kia. Really. I mean, if I hadn't tried to touch that..." Taddeo looked in the direction of the ring that was now out of sight, "... then I wouldn't have known. I don't mind keeping secrets, and won't let you down. I promise."

Kiara watched her little brother as thought out her exlaination for everything, there was a reason why she wasn't making him take a blood oath. Because one first if all, she trusted him, he was her brother not a person coming to her just so they could inflict harm on another, her brother wasn't like that, probably one of the reasons she was so protective over him. Secondly he didn't really know much about what she did, yes he knew "dark arts" but specificly what spells she did was different.. There was no need to have oathed and to make him take would say she didn't trust him which she did.

Of cousre the was the threat of having him be comprimied, kidnapped tortured for information, but to her there needn't be that point... She would turn her self over to whoever dared harm her family... then kill them after she "handed herself over" there are few that now her wrath in that area, well Tom Riddle was one of those few. Even though her father had actually killed him in the end... she fought him, she felt she had to straighten that out... for pay back for what he did to her mother... granted she basicly mad at him for make her possible.. but she needed to do it.

At Tads voice she was snapped out of her thoughts.

" Thanks Tad, and don't worry everything is taken care of" she said with a slight smile hoping to make him for comfortable with the Idea.

At his statement about Sevastyan she chuckled, "Ah yes... well only go to Sevastyan unless I can't be reached and it is a dire emergancy type of thing then.. He has decent judgement... in that kinda thing anyway" She said with a smirk.

"Since you already know my secret, it would only benifit you to have more knowlege then having none at all" she reasoned.

At his last statment her face softend, "Hey this isn't your fault, you didn't know the ring was cursed, you couldn't have. And I know you won't let me down Tad... such a action is not possible." she assured, she was with out a doubt confident Tad would never knowingly betray her, a least it wouldn't happen in this universe.

If misfortune struck and Tad was illegaly interoagted with truth serum, well the russian Mafia had good Lawyers. But she wouldn't be dissapointed in Tad, no not in the least, it wouldn't have been his fault.

"Now.. now that that is out of the way... walk with me have a look around pick something out if you want. Get the family discount" she said with a wink, which meant, aka Free.