Idara flinched, one hand going to Aspen's shoulder. "Hey, calm down," she whispered, trying to keep her voice even. "Listen, let's just--"
"I don't have to kill people to defend myself, professor," Maka snapped back, her eyes flaring dangerously. Outside, the ghost girl seemed to flicker, then almost solidify. "I'm not helpless without magic I clearly have no idea how to use properly. Maybe if you'd bothered to train yourself a bit more you wouldn't be wanted for murder right now!"
"Help me, help me--!"
"Oh for the love of all the gods will you just shut UP!"
The necromancer whirled to the window, bringing her staff around as though she intended to strike the ghost, pointless an effort as it would have been. Her eyes locked with the girl's, and with a sudden, sickening feeling of dread in her gut she realized she'd broken her most important rule.
Don't speak with them.
The girl smiled, and stepped into the room. Plague rotting her flesh away, she reached out. Maka was frozen, trembling. She couldn't move, couldn't fight, pinned in place by the empty fire of that gaze.
The girl's hand brushed hers and her eyes rolled back in her head. She collapsed.
It all happened in a few moments. Idara didn't have time to do anything more than try to place herself between the bounty hunter and her friend before the young woman just up and fainted, to all appearances.
"Gods!" The ice mage started forward instinctively, then paused. "What--she just keeled over! What the hells is going on?"