— THE SEEN —
what do you want from me?
Hargrave House;
✣ At a glance, the large Gothic Revival manor known as Hargrave House appears imposing but otherwise normal. The House is a three-storey structure in dark stone that looms over a garden square where passerby often say that its many windows give the impression of being watched from within. Hargrave doubles as a workplace and residence for a coterie of individuals known as hunters, who have also taken the term "Hargrave House" as a collective noun. No one can seem to remember when the place was built or when the hunters first arrived to take up their work — to most, they have always been there.Inside, Hargrave is a place that feels unbound by the rules of time and space. Sometimes one will find a room that almost certainly did not exist the day before, or not be be able to find one they'd been in just recently. Stranger still, one may make a turn that ought to have been impossible given the layout of the rest of the house. Despite these oddities, its residents always seem to be able to find what they need, but those who are uninvited quickly find themselves lost if they try to venture too far inside.
You arrived at Hargrave barely an hour ago, seeking their assistance in gathering information. The foyer was high-ceilinged and airy, with branching rooms and a large central staircase leading up and into the house. After explaining your case to the older gentleman who let you inside, he led you down a number of oddly-angled halls that — in retrospect — made no spatial sense, considering what you'd seen of the building from outside. You were left alone with the promise that the resident "best suited to your needs" would be joining you shortly. Now, you wait...
Hunters;
✣ Individuals who are maligned by "proper" society — mages, monsters, and their ilk — are those most commonly employed by Hargrave House as its hunters. Although they are called such and their work does primarily involve such monster-hunting assignments, Hargrave House offers many services to those who find their way to them.Because of their natures and their methods, it is typical of the residents to obfuscate their lives — even from other members of the House. This is also a tactic to avoid becoming too close to one another; hunters are often short-lived, due to either their quarry or their own secrets catching up with them.
— THE UNSEEN —
why don't you run from me?
Magic;
✣ The existence of magic and those who exist outside the bounds of perceived normalcy are considered to be an open secret. Although an individual mage will typically do their utmost to hide their status as such from others, that they exist at all is an established fact — some have even come forward in an effort to push for broader acceptances, but they are often met with opposition from all sides. Common folk often fear such a degree of power, while other mages urge silence for their own safety.
The air of the study you've been left alone in feels charged with the smell of ozone and rust. You look about the room with curiosity; the space is immaculately kept. It is furnished in rich, dark shades of plum and burgundy, with the windows covered in heavy black fabric against the daylight. Even in the dim light you can tell that there is no dust, no clutter.
A glint of silver draws your eye to a cracked black mirror in a silver frame hung over a small table, empty of further decoration. It almost hurts for your eyes to linger on, so you instead turn to the bookcases along the far wall. There are a number of texts on the topics of magic - the arts themselves, the philosophies and histories thereof, applications both practical and theoretical, the list goes on. Most interesting, however, are the ragged rough-bound books with no proper covers.
Divination
A craft that varies wildly across its practitioners, divination is one of the most widely practiced sorts of magic. Whether a mage uses cartomancy, scrying, or any other number of methods, the goal is to achieve some sort of sight beyond sight. Some focus on seeing other times while others turn their attention to other places, but the most advanced can see a combination of both.As one of the most widely practiced, it is also one of the few that laymen are less wary of. It is not uncommon for mages to ply their craft more publicly, though they often do not advertise the full efficacy of their skills.
Sigilcraft
The creation of sigils is a realm of study that most individuals with a knack for learning magical craft can pick up with ease. Considered to be a "low floor, high ceiling" practice — it is easy to learn the basics but mastery takes a great deal of study and practical application.Some, when tattooed into an individual, have permanent effects on their capabilities; whether to amplify certain skills or prevent the use of others. Tattooing oneself or others with such magic is not outright prosecuted by fellow mages but is often viewed as taboo due to how easily it can be used to exploit others.
Hemomancy
Some individuals are capable of using their own blood as a magical catalyst, and others can manipulate the blood itself — however it is used, such craft is referred to as hemomancy. Even amongst mages this practice is met with scorn and trepidation, viewed as a dangerous practice that is not worth the risks.Practitioners of hemomancy are therefore often reviled and are typically the most secretive of mages. This in turn continues the cycle of its abhorrence — associated with rogue, untrained users of a violent sort of magic who are considered to be a danger to those around them.
Monsters;
✣ More derided than mages — and therefore even more secretive — are monsters of various stripes. Werebeasts, vampires, and all the more are said to exist alongside humans. The full extent to which these beings exist is the subject of much speculation with little data to support any estimates. Even those that have fully integrated into society are very protective of their identities and do all that they can to keep out of sight.Some, however, are less willing to integrate and can sometimes seek to cause harm. Those are the monsters that Hargrave House are called upon to handle.
You take one of the hand-bound books down and begin to page through the old tome, finding its pages dog-eared and heavily annotated in a sloping, hurried script. The text itself is fascinating — something on the use of binding magic — though the work seems incomplete and the annotations devolve into frustrated illegibility.
Find something of interest? The sudden voice at your back makes you jump and whirl to face the speaker — a tall, pale individual in fine, dark clothes. His smile is polite but doesn't quite reach his eyes, though the amused lilt to his voice seemed genuine enough. Before you can come up with an answer, he offers you a gloved hand in greeting and tilts his head to eye you in a manner that reminds you distinctly of a curious bird. Jonah Davies. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.
— AT A GLANCE —
what are you wondering?
☾ Nickame: Aderyn
☾ Age: Thirty-One
☾ Gender: Nonbinary (It/He)
☾ Build: Willowy
☾ Height: 6'3", 191 cm
☾ Species: Revenant-Shade
☾ Eyes: Dark Brown
☾ Hair: Black, Greying, Wavy
☾ Skin: Pale, Sickly
☾ Markings: Scars, Moles, Neck Tattoo
☾ Fashion: Black, rich purples, fancy
☾ Jewelry: Amethyst Pendant Necklace & Earrings
☾ Personality: Candid, Mischievous, Vain, Curious
☾ Occupation: Investigative Medium
☾ Drives: Security, Comfort
☾ Fears: Being Used
☾ Values: Freedom, Power
☾ Strengths: Deduction, Magic
☾ Weaknesses: Impatience, Recklessness
☾ Likes: Hot Beverages, Rainy Days, Cooking
☾ Dislikes: Vague Questions, The Beach, Billiards
☾ Motifs: Centipedes, Corvids, Poppies
☾ Enneagram: ISFJ, 5w4
☾ Astrology: Scorpio ☼, Cancer ☾, Capricorn ↥
Undead by technicality, Jonah is kept more-or-less alive by the entities to which he is bound — primarily one that has since been made part of him. The shape he wears as a human is a mask, one that breaks down over time and eventually slips, revealing the strange monster he truly is.
In spite of the ugly years leading up to this period of his life, he tries to maintain a positive outlook; he prefers to live in the now rather than dwell on things that cannot be changed, though he will readily admit that some days are still harder than others. Presently, he uses hemomancy to fuel his divination by scrying and his summonings as a vessel to assist his fellow hunters in their investigative efforts.
— PLAYLIST —
what do you know?
a Secret Third Thing (Iron Deficient)
02. Enter the Demon - Trevor Something
03. Claws - Son Lux
04. Thanatos - Soap & Skin
05. FEEL NOTHING - HEALTH
06. Salt - The Devil Wears Prada
07. THE DRAIN - Bad Omens, HEALTH
08. Dark Dance - Burn the Ballroom
09. Lent - Autoheart
10. Baby I'm Dead Inside - KOPPS
11. OFF WITH MY HEAD - iRis.EXE
12. Haunted - Laura Les
13. Dangerous - Son Lux
14. Night Sculpture - Forest Swords
15. Tenebrous - Marcus Fjellström
— THE KNOWN —
why aren't you scared of me?
Bryn Manor;
✣ In a world where magic is known to exist and often derided, that some would seek to use these things for ill is widely considered to be a given and in light of such open mistrust, those who dabble in the more negatively-perceived arts must do so with caution.
Bryn Manor's more public-facing purpose is as a small and exclusive facility for the training of young mages, especially those who are showing signs of talents that lie in more inherently dangerous practices. While they do educate those they take in, Bryn is the current base of operations for a family calling themselves Castigants In Exile. Their true practices and intentions are closely-held secrets, with only those highest in the ranks being privy to any goals they may have. Mages with more dangerous skillsets are often shunned and lead isolated lives with little assistance from others, making them easy marks for such a group to get their hooks into — especially with the promise of likeminded individuals with which to learn.
Vessels;
✣ A vessel is an individual who is capable of minor bindings, taking in a fraction of an entity's abilities to use them for their own. Doing such can allow for the channeling of incredibly potent magic, but it always carries a risk of the vessel themself being harmed. Possession is a common occurrence, as is the entity turning on them and dealing more direct harm — but it is a gamble that one must be willing to make in order to access such power.What type of entity a vessel is able to bind varies between individuals. Some utilize spirits, others form pacts with strange beings, and others still are never entirely certain what they are drawing upon. No matter the type, the relationship is transactional: the vessel must offer something in payment to their associated source in exchange for their influence. Payment types are just as varied as the entities themselves, but often involve something vital or otherwise emotionally significant to the vessel.
— THE UNKNOWN —
why do you care for me?
The Fractured Void;
✣ Aeons ago, this was a place of great magical potency where extraplanar beings held court and heard petitions from lesser entities who sought their patronage. Now, the demiplane is a shattered reflection of what it once was — a great expanse of columnar basalt with scattered wells of time that give brief visions of things long past. Old structures can still be stumbled upon, ruins of alien architecture barely distinguishable from the rubble around it.Some things still wander here — persisting after the place was sundered by unchecked greed and ambition — but they are merely lost echoes of what once was. Some still offer pacts, while others are too hungry to give and can only take. The existence of the Void and its inhabitants are debated among scholars of magic. Few are those who claim to have seen it in dreams and fewer still are those who claim to be able to draw power from it.
— OTHERS —
when we all fall asleep -
xxx;
✣ xxx.— LINKS —
- where do we go?
repeating background by brushbuzzart
inspirations: the between rpg | house of leaves | fallen london
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