Abra Kadabra [IC]

[alderwitch]

There were smudges under Taylor's eyes as she moved around Moira's living room lighting candles. Hopefully, after Moira was returned, she'd get a chance to collapse into a bit of a heap. After the whole 'hell on earth' fiasco, she'd hit the ground running to rescue Jackson, and had spent the last few days mopping up the occasional lingering pocket of demons and making certain that she knew this ritual backwards and forwards. Except for the occasional nap - or, more accurately - the occasional pass out into an exhausted heap, she'd been burning her candle at both ends. And the middle.

The center of the room had been cleared to bare floor and a complex sigil had been laid down in salt lines. Normally, Taylor would never use something so easy to smudge, but they weren't summoning anything that would be dangerous to anyone in the house, and salt was much easier to clean up than paint. As it was all over Moira's floor, she thought the goddess might appreciate the thought.

Taylor herself looked younger than usual as she was dressed in a simple sleeveless white shift that she hoped would pass close enough to 'toga'. Her dark hair was pulled back in a simple knot and she bent over the book again, squinting at the spidery greek writing. "I think that's everything. Stesha and I will stand inside the outermost circle. I still think its best that everyone else remain outside the outermost lines. Moira's pantheon is, well, a hedonistic one and I'd rather not confuse our intent. So to speak."

[Electra]

Stesha walked around the edge of the circle and examined it with interest, careful not to smudge the salt lines with the hem of her robe. She'd dressed up for the occasion as well, since it didn't seem quite right to be a "prophetess" in blue jeans and a blouse. On the other hand, she wasn't going to wear a toga either, or work naked, as Taylor had suggested before all the guys had gotten involved. Instead she'd chosen a long white nightgown with a lacy front and edges, splitting the difference between bathrobe and grade-school angel costume with something she was only a little bit embarrassed to be wearing in public. She'd braided her hair into intricate circlets around her head and added a crown of daisies, in case anything went wrong, and counted herself ready. Aside from the green hair, she was one silver candlestick away from the front cover of a gothic mystery novel, but it sort of worked for what they were trying to do.

"So what exactly happens when we start up the ritual?" she asked Taylor, fidgeting with the sleeve of her nightgown. "There's no risk we're going to call up anything besides Moira, is there? We don't want any repeats of what happened a few weeks ago, but with a whole different afterlife..."

[Avenger Assembled]

"That's what I'm here for," said Jack, trying to sound professional as he kept his distance from the circle. Taylor had warned him about the consequences of the dead interacting with this particular summoning circle, and so made sure to stay a full body-length away. "Anything unsavory comes up, I'll send it back down so the two of you don't have your concentration disrupted." He'd brought a weapon along for the occasion, an impressively sharp-looking silver sword. "But I'm sure you'll get this right. Taylor's really good at this sort of thing."

[angrydurf]

Ace smirked at Jacks excuse for his presence, though he managed to avoid rolling his eyes. He had aquired the fitted patricians toga fromt he same source as he had aquired the details of the ritual. His source had said there hadn't been a priestess with the skill to commune directly with the olympians in decades but it had still taken him some skillful negotiation before she released the archaic text into his care.

He was confident however that Taylor woudl have little difficulty with the ritual. The cult of bachus was not exactly known for attractingthe most studious followers at the best of times. Besides if this didn't work he still had a good lead on a more direct acess to Olympus, getting her out once there was of course another matter entirely but at least it would answer thier questions if nothing else.

"So shall we get started then?" He asked lounging on the couch with a glance to Taylor for confermation she was prepared.

[alderwitch]

Taylor nodded, both to confirm Jack's answer for Stesha and that she was ready to begin. She stepped into the circle, careful not to kick over the little lines of salt as she found a place opposite Stesha. She left the book outside the circle. It was best to memorize these sorts of things rather than introduce another object into the ritual. Lighting in the incense, she nodded to signal to Stesha before she began uttering the chant. Really, she wished that Ace could have found a ritual that wasn't one of the Bacchaus. Lots of dancing and hand waving, but what could one really expect of esctatics. Resignedly, Taylor stomped her feet in the patterns, her hands rising and falling in time with the chant. She always did hate Greek rituals. At least she didn't have to sacrifice anything but a bit of wine. It was expensive wine too. That was Stesha's job, however, acting as Moira's prophetess to Taylor's priestess.

Despite the rather grim look on Taylor's face, she committed to the entire ritual. By the time she'd finished the three or four minute long chant-and-dance, her hair had worked its way out of the knot and was streaming down to her waist. She ended, arms upraised and breath coming in sharp little pants as she focused on pushing the dimensional barrier aside while Stesha provided the offering.

[Electra]

Biting her lip, Stesha carefully lifted the bottle of wine and poured it over the little altar in the center of the circle, hoping that the towels she'd put beneath it would keep the carpet from being ruined. She'd been practicing the Greek words Taylor had given her to say by rote for a week, but she was still a little bit nervous that she might say one of the handful of words wrong and summon something that was not Moira at all. But she managed to spit them out, and pour the wine, then carefully destroyed the bottle as well. Breaking it probably would've worked all right, but she was a little worried about shards, so instead she dropped a seed into the bottle and placed it on the altar. The seed grew quickly, its strong roots seeming to crumble the walls of the bottle in a matter of moments. Unbound, the resulting flower tipped into the wine and dissolved away. Stesha looked upwards hopefully, as though the ceiling would suddenly open and Moira would fall through.

[Moira Morley]

Edone heard the voices drone, calling her to Earth as she lay on her bed. She didn't need to sleep, it was more of a pleasure. Out of all the things she did while on Olympus, sleeping would have to be in her top one hundred. She and Hypnos shared a close relation at the beginning of her tenure. Though he spurned her after he found out she was courting many, many others.

The voices grew louder and more demanding. What could they want? She got odd requests sometimes. Not that she'd turn down worship at all. The more blessings she gave the more her name grew. In a few years she could have a sizable cult. Though she hadn't heard from her prophetess in a while. That's when the voice grew crystal clear. Moira and Edone both knew the voice that was calling. It was Stesha. Moira rejoiced in the fact that she was going to be in the company of friends. Edone rejoiced in the fact that her prophetess had learned to contact her.

She sprung up from the bed and wrapped sheet around herself like a toga. Edone had to be formal on such visits. Moira didn't care. It was time to see home for at least a while.

***

Light filled the room the ritual was in. The light was not harsh though. It was easy on the eyes. Though when it dissipated, the goddess Edone stood before the summoners, her prophetess and it seemed she had a priestess. This was fortuitous indeed. The woman known as Moira Morley also stood proud. She was home. She wondered if she could speak or move of her own accord. Would Edone grant her this bit of happiness?

Turning to Stesha, hand trembling, she touched her friend's cheek. Moira was in control They had called her, not Edone. She tearfully hugged her friend, "I missed you."

[Electra]

"Moira!" Dropping the formality of the ritual, Stesha threw her arms around her friend, hugging her tightly. "I'm so glad you're back, I was so worried about you!" A few tears trickled down her face, even as she laughed with relief. "Taylor had to find the right ritual, and we had to make sure we were going to do it right, and then... well, a lot happened while you were gone. Are you okay?" she asked, pulling back just far enough to get a better look.

[alderwitch]

Taylor's hands fell to her sides in mingled relief and weariness. She rubbed the back of one hand accross her eyes, before shoving her hair out of her eyes with the same hand. While Stesha hugged Moira and greetings were exchanged, Taylor scuffed through the protective sigils with her bare foot. It was important to break the lines in the right order. Quickly, far more quickly than it had taken to draw everything, the power of the circle snapped with a subaudibile pop that felt like a pressure shift and the lines of salt were simply salt again. "Ace found the right ritual, I just provided the details to look for."

[Avenger Assembled]

Jack stepped across the line when it was open, giving Moira a hearty slap on the back and a huge smile. "It was a team effort, but especially Ace and Taylor," he agreed. "It's really great to see you again, Moira." He casually set aside the massive sword he'd been carrying, resting the huge metal blade in the scabbard he'd left nearby, and moved back to move close to Taylor. There was no use being too friendly with a woman he'd once slept with.

[angrydurf]

Ace let Jack take up his standard possesive position next to Taylor before slowly standing himself and crossing the room to gently embrace the returned Goddess. "We all did what we could." Ace said smoothly, "Besides we couldn't leave you to lounge forever in some Olympian salon. You still owe me that drink." He added with a wink and a smile.

[Cyroa]

Dark Star had apparently been rather late despite all the planning and time spent developing this. Interstellar travel was not the quickest way to travel however and he had gotten hung up with something, so he had to portal home. But he certainly couldn't risk interferring with the ritual. He opened a wormhole a few hundred miles away, just to be safe, and simply flew the rest of the way down to Moira's apartment. He concealed himself as he passed through the walls of her home, smiling to himself as he sighted Stesha. He settled in a corner, floating patiently while they finished.

He let his concealment fade as he 'stepped' across the floor to stand by Stesha. "Welcome home Moira. You've been sorely missed." He glanced at everyone and nodded. He'd always believe in heart that things would work out. It was nice to have such faith so obviously rewarded.

[Moira Morley]

"I'm completely much more better than OK," Moira answered nonsensically with a bit of a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood as much as she could. But in a way she wanted this feeling of joyousness to never stop. She was home, surrounded by friends and loved ones. Stesha, Jack, Ace and someone else. Maybe she was a friend of Ace? Or just a pretty face who knew what she was doing. Either way she was glad that the girl knew what she was doing. She would have to meet with her later. She gave Jack a quick hug as he gave his greeting. Noting the super badass sword, she wondered why some people needed weapons when they themselves were as weapons themselves. Still, it looked cool, maybe that was the reason? They would have to talk about that and many other things later. Ace, always a favorite of hers, took no hesitation in taking the greeting. Giving him a wink back and a quick peck on the cheek after she hugged him, "We'll get to those drinks in due time." When Derrick made his entrance, it was like he final piece of the puzzle was fitted. She hugged him too, "Thank you, I missed you all too."

Finally she looked around her home and couldn't help but feel the hearth and happiness. "Thank you, thank you all," Moira said with a happy sigh. She wanted to meet with everyone in the room and then some. There was so much she had missed in those three months. Looking around to everyone again she smiled. She was comfortably uncomfortable. Usually being the center of attention was good with her, but she felt like other people deserved some attention. The people who rescued her. That was the comfortable part.

Edone silently sighed in the back of her mind. She was stuck on Earth, if but for a while. She wanted to be home where everything was fun and made to order. The instant gratification she craved was not available here. And much more than that, she wasn't in charge. This whole mortal thing chafed her. Then again, she had her prophetess and her priestess , so it couldn't be that bad. Could it? Moira wasn't into the whole worship thing, but maybe just maybe Edone could warm her up to the idea while she was here. She could possiblly make her want to leave this dreadful place. Ruling from on high was the life. Not to mention, even though they aboded by The Pact, the 'witchhunters' would be looking at her very very closely.

Moira cautiously stepped out of the circle, holding Stesha's hand with a mischievous snicker, as if this was her last steps to freedom from imprisonment. When she fully exited it was like a great burden lifted off of her shoulders. That and the pressure shift too. She wondered what that was about. "So," she nodded, pulling her best friend towards her but addressing the whole crew, "What do you say we get out of here and go over what I've missed over the past three months?"

[alderwitch]

Taylor was quiet at the joyful reunion. Considering the events of the last few days, her solemn expression could have been easily dismissed but for the fidgiting she was doing with the amulet resting against the hollow of her throat. Her senses thrummed at the dimensional activity, summoning a goddess to this realm went against every instinct she possessed. Taylor only hoped that she wouldn't some day have to banish Moira.

Supressing a sigh, Taylor reached up to twist the amulet between her fingertips again. Her white shift melted away into shadows to be traded for the faded jeans and dark sweater she'd put on this morning.Taylor resisted the urge to brush her clothing self conciously.

Taylor leaned against Jack, having sternly reminded herself for the umpteenth time not to grow maudlin, and suggested, "If you'd like, we'll clean up in here while you two get dressed in something a little more casual. I'm sure the boys can help with any heavy lifting."

The last was said with a stab at Taylor's usual dry humor.

[Electra]

Stesha grinned at over at Taylor. She wasn't blind to her friend's discomfort, but the happiness of getting Moira back made it hard to worry too much right now. It wasn't like Moira was an interdimensional criminal like the people Taylor had to throw out in her line of work. As soon as Taylor realized that Moira really belonged here and wasn't a threat, Stesha was sure the problem would disappear on its own. "What," she asked playfully, "am I not ready for the pajama party?"

Disengaging from Moira for just a moment, she gave Derrick a quick kiss to let him know she was glad to see him, then went over to the couch. She'd put a change of clothes in her bag so she wouldn't have to zip home to get dressed. "The toga look is good on you," she told Moira, "but it's a little cold. Want to go get dressed and we'll get something to eat?"

[Avenger Assembled]

Jack put his arm around Taylor, even as he beamed at Moira. It was really nice to have his friend back. "Anything you need, Moira, really. We're all just glad to have you back." He sensed that Taylor was a bit uneasy with Moira back, and he was confident enough not to think it was for any unsavory reasons. "Let's see, three months...well, a lot has happened." He shot a glance at Taylor, then at Moira. "We'll talk over lunch."

[Cyroa]

Dark Star nodded to Moira. He wasn't sure but if he didn't think Moira and Taylor had been introduced. Given Taylor's duties, there was likely to be conflict here from someone's perspective. Not that he was concerned of course. Kindness and the good intentions had carried them through rockier times than this. He gestured to Taylor and then to Moira. "I'm not sure if you two have ever been introduced. Moira, this is Taylor. Taylor, Moira. Taylor is also known as Phantom. She's one of the most power magically inclined people in this dimension as near as I can tell. And a good person and friend, in and out of costume. She helped...well, in more ways than I can think of in multiple situations." After the possibly unnecessary, but still glowing, introductions, he took a moment to concentrate and focus. After a few moments, Dark Star faded away and Derrick remained. He doubted wherever they were going he'd fit in well as Dark Star; it would draw too much attention, though with Moira sitting at the table it was quite possible no one would notice a dark energy being floating nearby. But more importantly, he could hold or kiss Stesha as Dark Star. He glanced over at his significant other and smiled as she got her change of clothes out.

[alderwitch]

Taylor's cheeks pinkened slightly at Jack's questioning look but she smiled her reponse to his unspoken question. At Derrick's glowing reccomendation however, Taylor made a flustered noise and gave a little wave of her hands.

"We met very briefly with that Arachnos thing but I was in costume then." Taylor provided, glancing from Derrick back to Moira. She lifted her chin self conciously. Taylor wasn't sure what Moira had heard if anything about her alter ego, but Taylor doubted it would be good. The greek pantheon wasn't a big fan of the Pact or its enforcers. "It was several months ago, though."

[angrydurf]

Ace took a step back and stole a subtle glance at Taylor. The presence here of being such as Moira was precisely what she was tasked with preventing. Of course with a valid summoning ritual they had neatly sidestepped that little dilema at least fot he time being. As for the future they could always find another loophole if they needed.

"Well," he said smoothly, "I think catching up over lunch would be deliteful. I'll call ahead." He added with a wink. As he pulled his Phone from somewhere his toga vanished in the blink of an eye replaced with a tailored suit and his somewhat out of place but trademark fedora. He spoke a few quick coaxing words into the phone then hung up, Pharohs generally didn't open for the lunch crowd but when you were Ace Danger the rules were a little more malliable. "I've arranged privacy as well so we don't have to worry about any stray ears listening in." He said with a smile.

[Moira Morley]

Moira curtsied a greeting to Taylor as they were introduced. "Nice to meet you, Taylor. Always good to have a new friend," she said to Taylor after Derrick finished talking. "Yeah, those kind of big get-togethers aren't a time of socializing," she nodded after Taylor mentioned the trans-dimensional trip to Bizzaro Earth, "Plus it was hard to remember much after I got that knock on the head. I'm sure we'll have lots of time to talk now that I'm here. That and I have questions about this whole summoning thing." She smiled as Jack moved in on Taylor. Moira wondered if Jack was giving her the run around that he gave Stesha. She would learn all in due time.

Moira looked to Stesha with a smile when she mentioned the toga. The "toga" she was wearing was made of a divine material, made to feel like what the person touching it wanted it to feel like. Right now it felt like something light and cozy. Microplush. Though if someone else touched it they would feel something else. Even though it looked like a wispy little number that reached mid-thigh. Not that she had time or control over what she wore when she put it on. "Yeah, maybe we can check," she was interrupted as Ace offered a greeting to somewhere else. She had meant to say Morley's, but she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. A very swanky gift horse at that. "That'll work," she grinned.

"If anyone else needs to change, the bathroom is to the end of the hall and to the left. We'll be back in a moment," Moira said to the crew before she took Stesha by the hand and lead her down the hall and to the right, her bedroom. When they got there, Moira sighed happily as she walked over to her closet, "I guess we got a few short seconds. What's been up?"

[Electra]

"Tons," Stesha replied with a rueful laugh, pulling slacks and a somewhat wrinkled blouse out of her knapsack. "It'll probably take a couple of days to get you all the way filled in. But I called everyone in to help when you were taken, and we only just now managed to figure out what to do. Were you all right? We were really worried about you. I mean, I know it's your family, but I know you didn't want to go. Are you okay?"

[Moira Morley]

"Well yeah," Moira said confidently, turning to her friend, "I'm doing perfectly fine. Better than fine." She laughed lightly, "You know, it's weird. This whole deal started with a message from home." Her voice turned mockingly lilting, "'Come back. We have so much for you here. It'll only be a little while. We haven't seen you in forever. Hey, we can teach you stuff.'" She shook her head with a snicker, "I'm not going to say I had a bad time. It was heaven. It was perfectly enjoyable. But what's heaven if you don't have control? Or your real friends?" She shrugged with a smile, "But yeah, i'm fine."

[Electra]

"Good," Stesha said, smiling with relief as she tugged off her long nightgown and slid into her regular pants and shirt. "Ace told me it would be okay, that they'd treat you well, but it was hard not to worry. I'm just glad you're back." She chuckled. "I'm taking Derrick home to meet my family for Christmas, and I'll need all the moral support I can get. But we can talk about all that later, maybe over some cheesecake."

It didn't take long for Stesha to get dressed, but it did take a couple of minutes to straighten and repin her hair properly. She chewed on her lip a minute as she looked in the mirror, then blurted out, "Listen, I know you just got back, but I think you really need to talk to Taylor about Jack. She doesn't know what kind of guy he is, and I think she's really falling for him. She didn't believe me when I tried to talk to her, but I know she'll listen to you. She's my friend, and I don't want to see her make a huge mistake."

[Moira Morley]

Moira didn't have plans for the holidays. She thought she'd still be on Olympus at the time. She wondered who would be around at the time. Her "family" on Earth was gone. Her family on Olympus didn't care. Well, until they were bored without her. She'd have to ask the crew what their plans were while they were out. "I'm sure you'll have a great time with your family," she said helping Stesha straighten up her clothes and hair, "You and Derrick are happy together. No problem."

All the time she was helping Stesha groom, she forgot change herself. When Stesha was done, Moira walked over to the closet, but before she could strip the toga, Stesha voiced her concern. She knew Jack hadn't given up his cad ways. Though she couldn't blame a playa for trying, she didn't want to see someone get hurt because of it. Hopefully this one wouldn't end up with Taylor hugging a tree humming incoherently. "I'll see what I can do," she said with half smile thinking of how to approach this situation.

"Really, we'll get this whole mess fixed up," she said singsongly as she flung the toga over to Stesha and grabbed some dark denim loose fitting jeans from the closet in one motion, "That's what I do!". She hoped she didn't sound like she didn't care. She did want everybody to be happy. And hey, she might get something out of it too. Well, other than everyone's joy. Hopping over to the dresser she grabbed a red t-shirt with a Katanarchist logo on it. Quickly slipping on both the jeans and the shirt, all the while figuring out how to approach Taylor about this little heart-to-heart. When she was done a short time later, she gently took Stesha by the hand and lead her through the hall again. A short stop at the hall closet netted her a black longcoat that she threw over her arm. And then they were back in the living room.

[Electra]

"Okay, good," Stesha said with relief, fielding the toga and folding it like a really long bath towel. "I'm sure she'll listen to you." She repacked her bag and waited for Moira, then headed back out to the living room where everyone was waiting. It looked like someone had broken out the vacuum cleaner and taken care of all the salt lines, leaving only the smell of wine in the air to commemorate the successful ritual. Well, and Moira, obviously. "All right, we're ready," Stesha said cheerfully. "What's the best way to get there?"