Owner	Pose
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon Hellstrom is seated in his bedroom. He's wearing black slacks and a blood red button-up shirt, the sleeves rolled up, the top few buttons undone, just a peek offered of the pentagram on his chest. It's just about midnight in Fire Lake, Massachusetts. Daimon is seated in an antique chair that's easily as old as the 19th-century house. It looks appropriately baroque and demonic, or maybe that's just the effect of the man sitting in it. He's waiting for his adopted niece, Qira, to come and sit in the matching chair that's a few feet opposite from him. His expression is somber, thoughtful. He's focusing. Qira has been warned: tonight is the start of her magical education. Why Daimon needed time alone beforehand to prepare for such a thing... well, that's a mystery just for Daimon to know.
Qira Quest	Qira has taken the time to prepare herself as well. Meditating, clearing her mind of stray thoughts, centering herself and focusing her qi. Dressed simply in the black halter top and wide-legged pants that she was wearing when they met, she heads down from one of the guest rooms to knock on the door. Once permitted, she'll open the door and step inside, looking unerringly towards Daimon and giving a solemn nod. "I'm ready, uncle." She's always been subtle on the emotive side but tonight she seems damn near placid, not a twitch or flicker to be found in her body language or features. Qira approaches him sedately, hands at her sides, to stand before him, waiting.
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon, meanwhile, looks like a locked door -- so to speak. His emotions aren't quite placid and serene, but rather chained up and put away from view, making his taciturn state feel all the more ominous for it. "We'll see," Daimon finally says after one... two... three full heartbeats. "Sit." When Qira sits, Daimon stares at her like he's trying to find a treasure hidden inside her spinal column. He sits in silence for another long few moments. "Normally, when people come to me wanting to be trained in magic, I show them a few things. Get them going and then send them on their way." Daimon pauses again, before saying: "But you're my niece. Blood or not -- you /are/ a Hellstrom now. And so you will be educated in what a Hellstrom's magic /truly/ is. It will test you. I know that your entire life has tested you, Qira. Tested your body. Tested your mind. But to train you properly, I will test your /soul/." "Do you wish to proceed?"
Qira Quest	Seating herself in the chair opposite Daimon, she rests her hands on the armrests and watches him with that same quiet patience. She doesn't seem to have any concerns or quibbles. Not a flicker of fear or doubt to be found. Nodding to his first comments, she recognizes that there will be more to come, so says nothing, just watching and listening, waiting for the other part of it. Then it drops. Qira considers what he's saying. If she even believes that she *has* a soul to be tested. At the end, however, Qira looks back to Daimon and gives a single nod, "I do, uncle. I will not fail you." She lifts one hand to motion towards him, "I would not betray your trust so callously."
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon replies with a single nod. "Another warning -- this will be a slow process, Qira. Because it's important to get it done /right/. People who chance upon a grimoire and start throwing around fireballs ten minutes later are people who tend to end up dead or enslaved to an otherdimensional force before too long." Daimon draws in a breath. "I'm going to ask you questions. There are no right or wrong answers. Just be honest with me. And from your answers, I'll know how to proceed." Daimon's hands move from the armrests of his chair, to steeple in front of his chest. "First... Qira Hellstrom, do you respect pity or weakness?"
Qira Quest	"One thing I learned very early. You can do a thing well, or you can do a thing quickly. Very rarely can you do both at the same time. Time is not an issue to me, uncle. Ensuring that I can do it well is important." Qira is aware that her mental abilities are better than the average human, but also that magic is not purely a mental discipline, so is willing to invest the time to make sure she learns it correctly. Inclining her head towards the mention of questions, she motions towards him once more, "I have nothing to hide or be shamed over." The first question is an easy one, and easily answered as well. "No."
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon doesn't give any indication whether this was the answer he wanted. He remains completely neutral in both tone and expression. He knows better than to think Qira is easily led by subtle cues, but he also resists sharing his opinion all the same. There's still work to be done, after all. "Is it better to seek happiness in victory, or in peace?"
Qira Quest	Qira doesn't seem to be looking for any approval or cues from Daimon. He asked for honest answers, and she's providing them. Whether the responses are what he's looking for or not, she answers him as he demands. The next one seems as easy to her as the first and she responds immediately. "Victory."
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon's stare seems to only be growing more intense as the conversation continues. It's not through any active attempt on his part, but rather just... an /aura/ around him, like he's giving Qira a sense of what it really means to be the Son of Satan and carry within himself the blood of an archdemon. "Mm." He pauses another long beat before his next question to the young white-haired woman. "Will you ever love anything so much that you cannot see it die?"
Qira Quest	"I have no concept of 'love'. So.. no." Qira doesn't so much as blink under Daimon's reagard, meeting his gaze evenly as he asks his questions of her. She doesn't twitch or shift in her seat, her breathing doesn't change, her pupils never dilate or constrict. Her gaze never wavers. She simply answers each question as it comes and waits for the next.
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon stands up. He closes the distance between himself and Qira with a few slow, measured steps. The entire time, his eyes are on hers, red irises meeting gold. He looks like he's either about to congratulate Qira, or wrap a hand around her throat to choke her. "Qira Hellstrom. I believe you are ready to become an Initiate." He pauses. "A /probationary/ Initiate." Daimon turns and walks away from Qira, toward a nearby desk. He picks up a book -- a very slim one, hand-bound, with no text on the cover or spine. Inside, the text is entirely in Latin. "You will begin by studying this text. However long it takes for you to translate it is however long it takes. But I warn you -- you will not be examined on mere rote memorization. You will be examined on how much you have /internalized/ what the text says, what it expects of you." Daimon offers the book out for Qira to take. "The first magic you will learn will be the magic of the internal. The many steps of the Path that seek only to learn the inner dimensions of oneself, so that one can shift their consciousness and align themselves properly. Only then can they advance."
Qira Quest	Qira doesn't move as Daimon rises to his feet. She watches his approach, her only adjustment is the tilt of her chin to keep him in sight as he approaches. Maintaining that blank expression as he pauses in front of her. Unblinking, unmoving. Waiting. "I will not fail you, uncle. I will do the Hellstrom name proud." She waits patiently as he retrieves the volume, not watching after him, simply waiting for his inevitable return. She takes the slim volume from him, looking over the exterior, her fingers running along the cover, the spine. Then she opens it, looking to the title page. The Latin is honestly, not unfamiliar. It takes her a moment, but she can translate the words. Looking away from the book, her gaze returns to Daimon and she gives a small nod to him, "I understand, uncle. There is a difference between knowing and understanding. I will study the tome and prepare myself for the coming tests. I *will* acquit myself well, I do not accept anything less." Looking back to the book, she gives a small nod, "That sounds not unlike balancing one's mind and centering the qi. It's a good practice to get into before undertaking a contact."
Daimon Hellstrom	Daimon reaches down to give Qira's shoulder a squeeze. "Not unlike, correct. But not the same thing. Go in with an open mind, Qira. You have a leg up on most people -- you have so few burdens that need to be shed from one's psyche." Daimon offers his hand to help Qira up from the chair. "Remember -- at this moment, you know nothing. You understand nothing. And we will move forward from there." Daimon allows a crooked little half-smile. "I'm sure that you'll prove yourself up to the challenge -- even if it'll be the hardest fucking thing you've ever done. But it'll be worth it." Daimon pulls his niece into a side-hug.
Qira Quest	Qira looks up at Daimon and gives a small nod, "I have a certainty of self and peace of mind that many struggle to find in their lives. I do not doubt myself or my abilities, but I keep myself open to new learning experiences as I know that I do not know everything." Taking his hand, she stands from the chair and gives a nod. "I understand, uncle. I will not fail." Though her expression doesn't crack at all (it will be awhile before she returns to what passes for 'normal' for her), Qira leans into the hug and returns it, squeezing him tightly before looking up at Daimon once more, "Thank you, uncle Daimon. I will look forward to the challenge."