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*Mairead Uí Fand-Mór* · 06-30-2013 05:04 PM

It was rather clear, as she approached the entrance, that something was amiss. Mairead paused in her step when she saw the unmoving figure, the sense of dread growing as the moments wore on. With the sky losing much of its light, she cursed the lack of any magic that would give her a source with which to see into the darkness. She'd noticed the strange surface of the cave floor, but didn't want to aggitate a situation further if Garik was even hesitant to do so. Of course, she was only suspecting that was the case.

Could there be another explanation for his seeming frozen form? Mairead's heeart sped up slightly at that thought and she bit her lip as she debating within her mind of whether to do something or not. The fact that she couldn't tell exactly what it was that must have been inside the cave itself made her uneasy. She heard a bird not far in the distance and summoned it to her before commanding it to fly into the cave to be either her eyes and ears or a distraction, dependant on what happened.

**Garnett** · 06-30-2013 06:53 PM

The bird flying in swooped and chirped, flitting about before landing on the ground. It was several moments before it flew out once more, landing on her shoulder. There was a small fountain for the horses filled by run-in, a place for a fire and a snug area of sand for bedrolls. There was something more distinct however, something the bird felt off near Garik. As to what, it couldn't really tell.

Garik himself looked physically fine, but otherwise it was hard to tell just what was happening. There also was upon close inspection a doorway of a sliding door to close the cave's entrance.

*Mairead Uí Fand-Mór* · 06-30-2013 07:17 PM

Stroking the bird's head, Mairead still felt wary and the beginning of deep concern for Garik. Why wasn't he moving? She summoned the horses closer, though didn't allow them inside the entrance yet. Instead, she went to Garik's horse and searched for some flint before grabbing a rag from her own satchel and wrapping it around the end of a stick, then lighting it on fire to create a torch. She then stepped inside the cave just a little, holding the torch in front of her so inspect the area around Garik, though was careful of where she stepped.

"What is going on?" The woman murmured almost inaudibly, refraining from getting too close despite her worry for the man who still wasn't moving or saying anything. He was breathing, but he couldn't stay like that and she hadn't seen anything like this before. She waved the flame lower to see if there was anything on the ground that she could make out clearly.

**Garnett** · 06-30-2013 07:42 PM

Upon the ground the source of the problem became quite clear in the firey light. The entrance curved as a series of runes-unledgable in language but one of his boots were placed upon the line. His face was in mid-pause, as if paralyzed into place, and his body was less stiff and more frozen in place.

*Mairead Uí Fand-Mór* · 06-30-2013 07:59 PM

The woman frowned as she moved closer, though careful not to touch the runes themselves and crouched down to inspect them with a sigh. She was aware of the kind of magic that the Aesir used, but she had no idea how to break it. She glanced up at the man as she stood again, a look of consternation on her brow. Could the runes be made ineffective perhaps? They were carved into the ground, and touching them could bring upon her the state that Garik was in.

Studying him a moment, Mairead considered what she could possibly do before glancing back at the horses and summoning them inside. She gathered the reins of one of them and extended it before tossing it over Garik so that it settled around him. If nothing else had happened, then she would have the horse back up and pull the man off the ward.

*Garik Henrinson* · 07-01-2013 06:48 AM

Nothing occurs before finally the reins tug about his shoulders and pulls him back. With that as soon as his foot steps off the rune he seems to come to live all at once, arms flailing a little before putting his foot back down. "By Danu's tits I forgot about those." He grunted, looking down at the trap just at the door. "Much thanks for that. These are runes that are designed against intrusions. The door rolls to the side naturally, so the idea was once paralyzed the door makes a banging sound to awaken those within. It's only a ten minute duration however last I checked."

He took up the reins about his neck. "Easiest way to deal with it," He said, taking up a spare cloak and laying it on the ground. "is to build a sort of bridge over it so our beasts and pass without incident as well as us. It was a ancient defense really, meant for being against things like wolves or wild dogs."

*Mairead Uí Fand-Mór* · 07-01-2013 07:17 AM

A relieved breath left Mairead's body as Garik became unfrozen upon his removal from the ward, her body relaxing from what she realised was concentrated tension, though with the relaxation came a slight tremor which she tried to hide. She summoned the horses to further enter the cave, though wedged the torch in some rocks before moving to wrap her arms around Garik tightly once he'd placed a cloak over the trap, holding him for a moment.

"You scared me for a moment; I had no idea what was going on," The woman admitted with a chuckle, albeit it a slightly uneasy one. Her gut was still twisting a little with the knowledge that she wouldn't have known what else to do if what she'd done hadn't worked. She nodded in explanation though as she released him, ducking her head to hide the possible vulnerability that had shown itself for a moment in her features, and moved to pick up the torch and head further in the cave.

There, she checked the fountain, using her magic to filter the water and remove anything that wouldn't be good for the horses while she continued to calm herself, feeling perhaps even more tired than she had earlier.

*Garik Henrinson* · 07-01-2013 07:34 AM

With that he raised up an arm and gave a comforting squeeze about her arm. "I am sorry for that,"He smiled lightly, then watched her shift over to the water as he sat down the bedrolls. He moved some of the stock wood and kindling into the corner, shifting it and setting it up for a fire. Placing down the small bottle underneath it, He looked back to her and settled back beside her. "Best you be getting some rest, I'll take first watch. You've been using your charms quite a bit have you not?"

*Mairead Uí Fand-Mór* · 07-01-2013 07:46 AM

As she sat beside the fountain, Mairead also made sure to top up her waterskin before sticking the stopper back on it and checking the horses to make sure they were comfortable and warm. She glanced up at Garik as he suggested she rest first and gave a small nod, though she wasn't sure how she'd go about sleeping. Of course, he was correct though which meant she probably wouldn't have as much difficulty as she thought.

"Aye, it just comes as first nature to me," Mairead admitted quietly; unable to really imagine ever not using her charms at least once every day. She passed over the torch for him to use on the fireplace so that they might get a bit more warmth in the shelter as she got up and made the horses more comfortable for the night and then sat herself down on one of the bedrolls with a soft sigh and a yawn. It probably wouldn't take much at all, now that she thought about it.

*Garik Henrinson* · 07-01-2013 08:50 AM

Taking up the small bottle, he bored some of the liquid onto the wood briefly before sticking the torch inside the heart of the stack in the fireplace. Bursting to life, he settled the torch back to being dowsed as he splashed water onto it, settling it to the side. While light was good to have, no need of his night vision being seared for the night's watch. He slipped over as she sat down yawning, and placed a kiss on her cheek before helping her settle in comfortably. "We'll talk about the usage later, but I think i have a rough grasp of the idea. Sleep well now love."