[Open] Gray November Days

[teratias]

Who: Waver and whoever wishes to join him
Where: In and about the Temple of Beginnings and Lakeside
When: Early November
Rating G
What: Mucking about, practicing some magic



Fighting Ring
[Autumn seemed to have settled over the Temple in the way that it always did after any version of the Halloween holiday. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Waver suspected that Bonfire Night was either on the horizon or recently passed by.

That holiday wasn't why he had a little fire going beside him within the fighting ring. There was a far more practical reason, and with no one else around, he felt confident practicing. His magic was strange and particular, requiring an on-going flame and the destruction of paper to make it all work.

But it let him do things he'd never be able to accomplish otherwise. He puts a single piece of paper to the fire beside him (it's small, of course, nothing that can get out of control.) As the stuff turns to ash, iron spikes rise from the ground, impaling the dummy that has been his enemy. It's a nasty sight, stuffing going everywhere, and it ends with a genuinely shocked Waver staring at the scene.]

...Woah. That...that worked a little too well.

[The surprise means that anyone watching can get the better of him, but...well no one's that rude. Hopefully.]

Forest of the Fey
There's still something unnerving about the forest, but Waver has tried to walk it several times recently. Today's adventure is no different. He trudges out into the dense greenery (now autumnal, perhaps soon wintery), eyes everywhere and ears strained to see if there are more secrets this place is willing to give up.

In doing so, he is not paranoid, just keenly aware. It is for that reason he tenses when he hears something. There have been big animals before and...perhaps this is one of them?

There's no noise from him. Waver is still, waiting for the noise source to reveal itself.

Shores of Lake Dona
[Waver can't say what it is that draws him back to this place. Exploring the caverns alone is a poor idea, and getting too closer to the water invites mermaids to be well...dicks. But there's something about this place that needs to be explained. It's arrival saw the intermitten return of powers, and that still says something.

He sits quietly on the shore (far back, of course), his hands resting on the ground to support his weight, a discarded notebook to one side.]

If I was a source of some kind of overriding power, where would I be....


Wildcard
You know what to do

Comments

[teratias]

So it's providing strength to...ability to be determined?

[Waver looks down at the lighter again, and holds it up to examine it better. Out of curiosity, he flicks it open, clicks for the flame and

FWOOSH.

Well, not really, but it's far more powerful than a typical lighter ought to be. He then looks over at Merlin, laughing a little shakily from the fire.]

Like that, then?

[courtmagic]

Do you want to experience it for yourself?

[he smiles, but his eyes hold a hint of seriousness. he'll do it for Waver, if only so he grasps it better, and for himself, that he might understand this power better.]

[teratias]

Should I let you pick the spell? That way the reaction is something we can both embrace for, and you know how it'll impact the words I burn?

[courtmagic]

Are you so certain that my power will affect your magic? That might not even be the trait it latches onto.

[it was a toss up, really. he would have to know someone very well to know exactly what it would generate, or they had to be really obvious, or truly believe in that moment.]

[teratias]

It's not like I have any other traits.

[For something that's borderline self loathing, Waver says it a little too matter-of-factly for his own good. Merlin, you should not have to deal with this terrible boy, I'm sorry.]

[courtmagic]

[an eyebrow raises and descends, and Merlin extends his free hand. a glow begins to build there, a gentle light, and the magic moves forward to Waver. it's warm, refreshing where it meets - raising him up, steadying him, a belief in him that he is encouraged to feel as well. letting him become brighter, stronger, because he can, he is capable. where he shines, he shall shine even more.

the glow comes to rest on Waver, leaving him slightly luminous, and Merlin drops his hand, interest in his eyes.]

[teratias]

[It's...there's a warmth that Waver feels that is so alien to him that he thinks that he's come down with something. That warmth moves inwards, seeps past his magic circuits, goes right into his bones. There's so much more carried in that too, the same kind of feelings that Rider let him experience for the first time and now feel so far away and so far removed.

Looking at Merlin, Waver doesn't hide the confusion in his face. He has no idea what the hell happened, but...he's sure it did something. What it is is impossible to articulate.]

That's...

[Different? Weird?

No.

He lets out a soft laugh, almost to himself.]

I guess I really am not meant to be a skilled spellcaster.

[courtmagic]

What do you mean? What did it touch, in you?

[it had been a gamble, he had admitted, and so he was curious now to see how it paid off. what it made happen to Waver, what makes him this confused.]

Think about it. Where do you feel stronger?

[teratias]

Not on my circuits, that's for sure.

[Waver says it darkly, because God, why couldn't it have been that? It's all he wants, to be better at being a mage. Stronger. To be more.

But he can't whine at Merlin about that. Not just because it's fucking Merlin, one of the greatest mages of legend, but because Merlin let him borrow power and that is a gift. He's just being a baby because it didn't go how he expected.]

I...I feel like if I have to pick between two spells in a split second, I'd know the more effective one?

[Brighter. Stronger. Capable.]

[courtmagic]

Wisdom. That's a new one. And dare I say it, better than just raw strength. I mean, I'm still going to say that it's better to know how to hit things instead of just relying on your spells, but knowing how to utilize them? Most mages take years to even come close.

[he's being a little generous with the praise, but also, he's part of it. otherwise, Waver would have never figured it out! see, he did great.]

Today, that is where your strengths lie. A year, more, you have no idea what else might bring you up higher. Remember what I told you? You're not stuck here.

[teratias]

[It's just. This is weird. This is Merlin. Fucking Merlin praising Waver's skills. And he should just eat up every inch of the praise. But likewise: fucking Clock Tower. Fucking Kayneth. Everything that's been pounded into his head that he's just a low rate third generation mage.

But wisdom. That's a hell of a way to phrase it, and for a moment Waver can only nod and try to understand.]

I...yeah. Could've used it in Fuyuki.

[He hopes it'll endure until he returns.]

It's hard to remember some of that stuff though when everything keeps happening so fast.