GranspearZX

Marcus nodded, smiling faintly. "Yeah, I've heard stories about people who mess with magic and end up causing all sorts of trouble. I'm not so eager that I'd do anything crazy." It was true that he was immensely interested in being able to do some of the things he'd read about in stories and fairy tales... but he was a realist at heart, and even in the past few weeks, he'd learned that unchecked and accidental magic could be extremely dangerous--catastrophic, even. "I wonder how many 'natural disasters' were just some one doing something stupid with magic... Or looking for some instant solution to a problem." He had to admit he was at least partially guilty of that, though he hadn't yet acted on the impulse to try and use a scrying spell to locate his mother. As tempted as he was, he'd calmed down considerably since coming up with the idea, and while he hadn't given up on the idea just yet, he knew he wasn't ready to see her. "I wonder what it'd be like to meet one... I probably wouldn't know it even if I had." He looked up for a moment; their destination seemed to sneak up on him entirely. "Huh, I think we're here." It seemed like a nice enough place, and he moved forward to open the door for Etain.

"Lonely... hm." He repeated the word in the brief pause. Marcus earnestly tried not to think about it. Instead, it was much easier to just keep moving forward; in the long run, things just seemed simpler that way. "Maybe it's easier that way. The nature of runecrafting, I mean. I like working with my hands." It was true, though most people wouldn't know much about his artistic talent just looking at him. He wasn't half bad at most artistic pursuits; that, unlike magic, came pretty naturally to him. It helped him remember the runes from his book, largely because he'd practiced drawing them so often. Thankfully, he hadn't caused any major arcane accidents so far, but there was always a first time for everything. "If mythology is any indication... most gods are kind of jerks anyway, aren't they? With a few exceptions, I mean..." The first thing he thought about was the Greek pantheon. They rose to power and then... they went a little overboard. Beyond that, though... he wondered just how limited his knowledge was about everything that was out there.

Marcus wasn't even aware of other dimensions--at least, not in the same sense as Etain. He'd come into contact with the 'dream dimension', and after his last little soiree into that madness, he'd done a lot more independent reading on it. Thankfully, it was all in English. Latin was going to have to come later. "Ah, I see... I don't have a guardian. Legally, I'm pretty much on my own..." Marcus frowned a bit at that. Sure, he could go to visit his father if he really had to do so, but he often had sneak around to do it. No one knew him well enough for that to be a problem so far. Who would really care if 'the new kid' kept disappearing every other weekend? "Claremont seems like a pretty cool place, so far though... not at all what I thought it was gonna be. Still, it's nice to be able to talk about magic and not have people look at you like you're nuts." He smiled a bit at that as he walked, looking up at the cloudy sky while following Etain's lead.

"Chinese, huh?" He'd never tried Chinese, but he was willing to give anything a shot once. He recalled his mother had brought him to a Japanese restaurant when he was younger. He wasn't sure he was going to like it then, but it turned out to be one of his favorite places to go before he'd ended up moving to Freedom City. "So, you just got here this semester too..." He nodded slowly, shifting the weight of his book so that it was resting across his back rather than at his side. "I was at FDR High before I came here. Middle of the semester, too..." Marcus shook his head. That was a large part of the reason his grades were so abysmal. He knew Claremont's classes would be harder, but he wasn't sure how much harder until he'd arrived.

Arc positioned himself between Mary and the spider, just in case. Watching Rene begin the circle, he watched very carefully--it was, after all, a learning opportunity. It was a little unnerving, realizing just how powerless he was in a magical situation. He wasn't sure why he hadn't thought of recreating the circle on the medallion, though part of that was the girl's refusal to give it to him. Unable to do anything for the moment, he lifted his head and sniffed absently at the air--the landscape might not have been real, but he'd hoped he'd be able to pick up on something that was. I'm so glad I wasn't like that when I was her age... That certainly wasn't to say Arcturus wasn't afraid of anything. He couldn't swim and hadn't tried it in some time; he outright refused. But he couldn't remember a time when being afraid had led him to act so... stubbornly. Then again, he'd never been trapped in his own nightmares, and he couldn't really be sure how he'd react if he was confronted with the one thing he truly feared. He said nothing but grew visibly more tense at the sound of the spiders, shifting his stance a bit in the mud and careful not to disturb the circle Rene was drawing. Arc wasn't going to be rude and tell him to hurry, but it was all over his expression.

"Cafeteria's probably closest," Marcus mused aloud, "but I've seen a couple of places near here I wouldn't mind goin' to." He raised an eyebrow at the pocket watch, and his right hand grazed his pocket to make sure he had his phone. It wasn't as if anyone was going to call him, but it was nice to have, just in case. Brushing himself off, he started the walk off campus, stuffing his left hand into his pocket. "So... how long have you been here at Claremont?" It occurred to him, even though he'd been invited to attend and his parents were miraculously able to afford his tuition, he didn't really know much about the school. He felt a little bit like he'd been dumped there--but it was still just a stop on his journey to find his mother and make her answer for everything.

Arcturus's free palm found his forehead. He wasn't at all good with kids, and despite his best efforts, it kept failing miserably. He put Mary down next to Rene, unsure of whether or not she had seen her parents... if they were even real. Even if they weren't, the symbolism would only fuel her fear. He agreed with the elder magic-user; that wouldn't be good for anyone involved. The thought of playing on Mary's fears on purpose made him frown deeply; Arc definitely didn't like where that particular train of thought was leading him. He was going to have to get his hands dirty again, if he wanted to avoid that. "Listen, kid... ...er... Mary. I don't know what the boogeyman told you... but he's a bad, bad person. Don't worry though... Uncle Arcturus and Grandpa Rene'll get you back where you belong." Somehow or another. Avoiding the issue of the big nasty arachnid for the moment, he tried to get a good look at the medallion. He wasn't going to ask her to give it up again, not after that last little outburst, but he really didn't want to risk fracturing the kid's mind just to get out of her nightmare...

Arcturus weighed the pros and cons of just taking the amulet and smashing it with a rock. He usually tried to be a little more subtle about the way he did things, but somehow things always came down to one or more objects being smashed with something else. It was hardly methodology befitting a magic-user, but he was, after all, his father's son. Still, even if artifacts like that had a focus--the pearl, he assumed--there was nothing stopping the original maker from just making another one and pulling the same sadistic trick on someone else. He'd resigned himself to finding this 'boogeyman'. And perhaps smashing HIM with a rock. And then he saw the spiders. Oh come on! I swear to God I'm gonna gag this kid... Arcturus's jaw went slack at the sight of the spider. Not only was it a spider, but it was a BIG spider--bigger than him. He took a moment to compose himself, holding his free hand out. "May I... borrow that medallion, Mary?" As far as he knew, scrying worked both ways--one could see things and, in turn, be seen. He knew enough about ritual magic--or so he'd hoped--to figure it out and, hopefully, save the three of them from having to traverse this girl's entire dreamscape for who knew how long; instinct told him that there was likely far worse than this spider around.

"I knew dreams were dangerous," Arc muttered, frowning as he watched the waters in the lake start to steadily rise. On top of the very real prospect of drowning, the girl's medallion made him especially nervous. The one around his own neck changed along with his form; it was hard to see under all that black fur, but it was still there. Identifying what it was would take more time than he actually had, but there was no way he was going to let a monster trap some child in her dreams. It seemed that the older gentleman had a much better fix on magic than he did... On one hand, it was perfectly understandable given the situation, but he still wanted to know HOW he knew. Definitely a question for later. "...alright, everybody out of the pool." The rising water made him less wary about looking towards the water's edge to escape, especially now that the spiders were gone. He distracted himself by trying to remember his own studies on magic. Supposedly dreams existed on an entirely different dimension. Usually they were protected from intrusion, but sometimes... well, sometimes, they weren't. Especially if one received something in the waking world to compromise a dream's relative safety. He growled to himself, wondering what sort of sick nut would give something like that to a little girl... He didn't dare try to remove it; that could potentially make things worse. "I'm all for payin' this 'boogeyman' a little house call. The sooner we do that, the sooner we can get you home..." Red eyes and large teeth aside, his tone was surprisingly tame as he glanced at Mary. Arc was still hanging on to her as the waters rose, and he looked over at Rene for a second opinion.

Arc's Knowledge roll: 1d20+9=22

Arcturus was hardly about to admit how scared he was; just the idea of submerging himself more than waist-deep was disturbing. With his free right hand, he backhanded a group away from him, backing into the water with extreme reluctance. It wasn't the cold of the water that was bothering him, at least, and he managed to force himself further into the lake. Thankfully, he was taller--much taller--than Rene, and even standing next to him, the water wasn't terribly deep. Yet. Arc wasn't sure if he wanted to go any further than he already had, but from where they were standing, it seemed as if the spiders were even less willing to traverse the water than Arcturus was. Inwardly, he was somewhat relieved, but given his luck lately, he certainly wasn't going to revel in it. "I don't like the creepy crawlies either," he replied with a curt nod, looking over at Rene. "I'm gonna assume you've got a plan..."

Arcturus's Reflex Save: 1d20+10=27

Good lord, how many books does she have? The difference in experience was light night and day. Marcus, of course didn't know a thing about Etain apart from the fact that they were both students at Claremont, but he still felt as if he was a little bit behind. Ignorant of his magical heritage, he felt like it was someone's fault. Whose, however, was much more difficult to say. There was no use in blaming anyone though... all he could really do was move forward. "Thanks," he replied with a smile, looking at the address. The place seemed more or less familiar. He'd been on the north end of town before. In fact, he seemed to be spending a lot of time there in recent weeks. Committing the address to memory, he adjusted the strap on his book, repositioning it on his shoulder. "I'll probably check it out tomorrow. In the mean time, I should probably get somethin' to eat; been at this all morning. You're... ah... welcome to tag along." It occurred to him that he didn't have many--well, ANY--friends at Claremont. It seemed like an appropriate gesture, considering how much insight she'd given him.

"I guess it was silly to think that this would be easy. Just, y'know, wave my hands and make stuff happen..." He smiled nervously and nodded slowly. The whole conversation made him consider that he was, perhaps, trying to start a little bit too big. Learning Latin seemed like an excellent start. The idea of a magic shop that was more than just symbolic trinkets caught his attention as well... There was also the off chance that she knew his mother. He wasn't really aware of how big or small the magical community was, and the thought of people finding out the exact circumstances behind his enrollment at Claremont scared him a little. It was one reason why he never took that pendant off--apparently, it was designed to keep people from reading his mind, as well as keeping him safe from more obvious magical effects. It was a risk he would have to take, however. "I guess this shop would be a great place to start... where is it?"

Arcturus had the girl cradled in his right arm, running as fast as his legs would take him. He wasn't, however, going to let Rene lag behind, keeping a watchful eye on him while he ran. "Just hang on, kiddo, and don't let me go, okay?" She hung on for dear life around the bear's broad neck, her face buried in his fur. "The lake! Right... wait, what?!" He ran in that direction, but the hesitation was evident in his eyes. He was NOT a fan of water by any stretch of the imagination, and the first thing that popped into his head was him drowning. He hesitated for a second--long enough for Rene to catch up--and waded waist-deep into the water. Hopefully that was enough to avoid the arachnid invasion. As long as I stay calm, she'll stay calm too... right? Right.

Etain's magical demonstration had Marcus's full attention. It was surprisingly subtle, and he smiled a bit as the bird landed on his shoulder. It felt and looked pretty real, but she explained that it wasn't. "Well, there's really only one thing I can do magically, and even that's not perfect." He wasn't even sure if he should show her his bear form. It wasn't some debilitating secret, but he wasn't exactly certain if that sort of display was appropriate at Claremont. It wouldn't have been the first time he'd seen someone using their powers out in the open, but if nothing else, Marcus Irons was a modest person. Mostly, anyway. "My dad says it's a lot like his... very physical. No tossing fireballs or conjurin' wind gusts. That's more like my mom's thing... or so he says."

Rene had, in fact, guessed right. "Silly? Look here, y-..." He stopped when Rene put a hand on his arm. He was a little more surprised that Rene would put a hand on him that anything else, but he knew the universal 'back off' signal when he saw it. Nothing seemed real in this place; it reminded Arcturus vaguely of that dream he'd had back at the museum, but this one was different. He hadn't been able to interact with anything at the museum, but he had a recently healed acid burn to prove this one was, at least on some level, real. "Sleepy place...?" Had he been caught in someone else's dream? He frowned; as if his own weren't bad enough, dealing with someone else's subconscious baggage was far too much for him to handle. "...and did she just say sp-" To say he was creeped out by the sight of the spiders would have been a gross understatement. He'd seen enough horror movies to know how these sort of things went, and there appeared to be no end to them. One giant killer ooze was one thing, but a swarm of spiders was something else entirely. Real or not, he didn't want to stick around to figure it out. Holding out his paw, he beckoned the little girl forward. "...I think this is the part where we run, kiddo."

And now... bear talks to creepy little girl! Arcane Knowledge roll: 1d20+9=19 Diplomacy roll: 1d20+1=9 Sense Motive roll: 1d20+9=19

"...huh." He blinked; he hadn't been paying attention before, but there was a definite surreal quality to everything around them... except the girl. That by itself threw up some red flags, and as she asked her question, his frown grew deeper. "Ah... scary place? Um... no, I'm not." He looked at Rene and nodded slowly, sniffing absently at the air. "Definitely not in Kansas anymore." His eyes went back to the girl and he started to approach her. He tried not to look menacing--difficult considering his size--and crouched down as best he could so that he wouldn't seem so huge. He wasn't exactly the best with kids, but he would give it a shot nonetheless. "Hey, kiddo... where'd your parents go? We should probably go find 'em... what do you say?"

The rune had, in fact, expanded to repel the knife. It made him pause as she explained herself, and suddenly he felt incredibly stupid. He almost didn't realize he was still holding her, and the moment she said something he immediately let go, mortally embarrassed. "Oh god... Sorry, I didn't mean to... ah... crap." He frowned as the knife faded away; magic really was a lot more than his fragile mind was prepared to deal with. His head was throbbing a little bit from having to hold back his transformative reaction, and he rubbed at his temples with the middle finger and thumb of his right hand. "I'm... really not used to his 'magic' stuff. I can barely tell what's real and what's not anymore. I don't even get how you made that appear out of nowhere."

Arcturus just watched Rene carefully. He didn't seem terribly threatening, and he had, in fact, helped Arc out of a rather dire situation. He sighed and his large shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. "My name's... ah... Arcturus." He certainly wasn't going to give this guy his REAL name, although it occurred to him that he might have to change back eventually. He wasn't even sure how long he could stay this way--so far, he guessed could stay as he was as long as he wasn't asleep or otherwise incapacitated. "Thanks, I guess... not that I needed your help. I had it under control." He wasn't exactly the best liar either. He headed back towards where he'd been sitting earlier, picking up his discarded sketchbook. "...so all that flashy magic stuff was you, huh? ...hm." He wasn't sure what else to say about it, though he had to admit a distinct amount of curiosity to himself. He looked down at himself for a moment, frowning at the condition of his clothes. "...not my day at all," he muttered, rubbing at his stout muzzle while he tried to figure out what to do next.

"...the hell kinda question is that?" Arcturus turned to face the older gentleman, eyes narrowed a bit. Clenching and unclenching his right hand to make sure it still worked, he remained in his bear form--better that than dealing with being half-naked in the middle of Liberty Park. It was hard enough to not look threatening, but he at least made the effort, sniffing absently at the rapidly healing burn. "I'm gonna assume that didn't belong to you," he muttered, his bulky form relaxing a little as he spoke. His eyes moved from Rene to the girl and her parents, not entirely sure what to say to either of them. He had, in fact, saved their lives, but what was one really supposed to say after doing something like that? He decided that saying nothing would be best; at least none of them had screamed yet.

"Whoa, hey!" He reared backward as he saw the knife--when the hell did she have time to pull out a knife--and he reached to grab her wrist. To say he was agitated was an understatement, and he had to actively fight his first instinct--to change forms. She pulled a knife out to test the amulet, he assumed... Still, it was a weird thing to do and he'd never known the amulet he was wearing to stop physical damage; he'd been in one or two situations where that would have certainly been nice. For a brief moment, his brown eyes brightened into a distinct, crimson hue before settling back to their normal pigmentation. "Somethin' tells me that's not the way to test how magic works."

There was magic coming from everywhere; first a lightning bolt and then a burst of flame. He wasn't sure it was magic, but then again, he really didn't know how to explain it. It was just as strange as the old man that suddenly arrived--was all that coming from him? Still, the fire seemed to weaken the beast considerably, and Arcturus was hardly one to miss an opportunity. He launched himself forward with a bellowing roar, rearing back and tearing into the beast with a disturbing amount of reckless abandon. It shuddered once and then its entire form relaxed into a puddle; this time, at least, the burn wasn't anywhere near as rough on him. He stood upright as the monster fell, chest heaving a little from the effort. He looked around, first at the elderly gentleman that had recently arrived, and then at the bystanders. He wasn't sure what they were more horrified by: him or the monster. The OTHER monster.

Arc's Toughness Save, for one last shot at the ooze vs that nasty acid: 1d20+10=26