Some, slightly drunk, mix of young half-elves and humans sneak up behind Wraithvine and friends, and drench them in ice cold water as a prank. Thank goodness, the day WAS rather hot, though the idiots THOUGHT they were being funny. -- Anon Guest
It was a common prank. First step was to have the common spell of Frosty Touch. Second step was to have at least one pail of water. The prankers chill the water until it was gelid. Then they picked someone they thought was too fancy for their own good and gave them a solid taking-down in the most harmless way possible.
They called it a Hoarbath, for the frost that formed on the pail, and most of the pranksters stopped doing it when they hit their mid-teens.
These young drunkards thought that nostalgia was hilarious, and picked a 'haughty wizard' as their victim. It was beautiful to watch with the water and the pail so cold that the steam from it fell downwards. Little icicles formed on that patchwork hat and some of it even splashed on the wizarding prentice at the Elf's side. They got a solid minute to laugh. Then they realised that they had Hoarbathed the wrong wizard.
Shadows bled out of hir form and infected the area around hir with eldritch shapes. The very water in the immediate area turned into boiling blood and turned again into foul and foetid ichor. The Elf rose into the air, lightning and weird flames coruscated around hir.
"WHO DARES BESMIRCH WRAITHVINE THE ETERNAL?"
The pranksters were suddenly very sober and possessing wet and smelly socks. They were too terrified to run, and only one had the ability to speak.
"We'reverysorrywethoughtyouweresomeoneelse," he blurted at the highest possible octave.
Wraithvine started laughing. Not the cackle expected of a high mage about to destroy some fools. It was the laughter of someone playing the best joke in the world.
"You needed some humility," said Wraithvine, repeating the lines usually used by the Hoarbathers. Still laughing, ze extinguished the illusions and settled back down to the ground. "Beware of playing childish pranks on people, gentles, people with power can act twice as childish as you may believe." A snap of hir fingers, and the water and all soiling factors were gone.
The prentice was still boggling. "You could have destroyed them for that."
"Aye, but people rarely learn after they die." Wraithvine smiled. "They were way too old to pull that nonsense and get away with it. Besides, the cool was almost welcome, today."
[Photo by John Dame on Unsplash]
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