diatu | bubble bubble toil and

Who: Alec Hardy and You
What: General Catchall
Where: In town, in class, in the cafeteria, outside
When: First week or so
Warnings: none atm

Town

Alec is wandering around town, looking lost, if only because he is. Also looking exceedingly disgruntled for reasons to be seen above. His strange whip made grim is padding along at his heels and occasionally going off to chase someone. Upon seeing you, the grim immediately charges toward you, a hundred pounds of not!dog gallumping toward you at mad speed and joy. There is the overall impression of a tongue hanging out even though the creature lacks evidence of a mouth. Brace yourself.

Teammates

Alec looks dubious about the magical equivalent of a trust fall. He is supposed to trust his partner, someone as green as himself, to keep him aloft in the air? Or trust himself to do the same? He had tried to ask if this was too advanced, but all he'd gotten was a smile and a patronizing pat and told to try it. He felt seventeen again and hated it. He was pushing fifty, not a bloody teenager.

"Right. Let's try not to break each other." He cleared his throat and pulled unconsciously at his tie. "You want to go first or should I?"

Dining in

Or not dining as the case may be. Alec has a plate of food in front of him, largely untouched. He is mostly involved with reading a tome or magical arcana. Others books were stacked up by him. There has been some evidence of eating judging by the corner being nibbled off the toast, but the tea has grown cold and steam is a memory and he has been there for a few hours, since breakfast or lunch depending on whatever time of day it is. It may be there is only one seat left opposite him. Be prepared for riveting conversation.

Beautiful? Disaster?

Alec is practicing a spell on the grounds. Does it go wonderfully? Terribly? Or you caught up in it or the witness to something...indescribable. Maybe it's better to sit this one out, just in case.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Now I am intrigued. What made it intuitive, that makes here different?" Loki seemed unperturbed by the turn this conversation had taken. "And you've been to a different world than your own before. Now do you mean a different planet or universe, or something like what we've experienced being brought here?"

"I don't know. This is outside. This is... tricks and... words and..." He made a vague gesture. "Things like that. It's not the same. It's outside of me."

He sighed, hands in pockets. "Something like that, yes. It keeps happening to me. I want to make it stop."

"It's not outside of you, as the energy has to come from inside you. But how you're used to manipulating it is the difference. The other likely felt instinctive because you weren't aware of how you were manipulating magic unconsciously." At least that was what Loki thought was likeliest. "Give me an example of some of the ways you used your blood magic."

"Mostly defensively, offensively, like a shield, anything I needed." He pulled back his sleeve to where a faint scar can be seen crossing his arm over the vein. "It's not anything that I need to go to therapy for but first you have to draw it out, and then think of where you want it to go."

"This isn't that different. You have to think of how and what and where you want the energy to go." Loki pointed out, resisting the urge to rub at his temples. "Instead of literal blood. It's still just a means of focusing your will to get the energy to do what you want. You were just doing so unconsciously before. Likely wasting energy too, in exchange for forcing it through by power of your will alone."

"Focusing my will..." He looked at his hand. His will. His energy. If it was just an extension of his blood then-- it couldn't be that difficult. If it was just him-- then it had to listen.

He stepped back and focused on the book, lying on the table. It was just him. His voice, his words, his power. Granted to him maybe, but it was still his.

He murmured the words, letting them flow from his tongue and moved his hands in the sequence, precise and without flamboyance but a certain raw energy tracing through his limbs. The book rose easily into the air, closed even, he could feel the drain of it, minimal that it was. Another gesture and the book spun before landing gently and easily on the still floating chair and he dropped his hands to his sides.

"Well, then..."

Loki didn't clap, or praise him. To be fair, he also didn't roll his eyes or deride his partner. Other than a simple I told you so-esque look in his eyes. Truthfully, he felt some pride in having gotten the other through the barest of basics, as far as he was concerned. Perhaps Frigga would've been proud...

It was fine. He didn't need praise. In fact he barely regeistered the other's presence as he focused again, said the words again, made the chair float, the table, the broken bits of the one that had hit the ceiling. He tried to raise them slowly by degrees into the air, his hand shaking with effort, sweating slightly.

And then he wondered just how far he could push. He glanced at the man.

"Are you okay for me to try?"

Loki was quiet while he thought that over, before shaking his head. "You're already clearly having difficulty and I have no desire to look clumsy. Remember, this is energy from you--it takes effort." With a sigh, as they were partners for this assignment, Loki looked at the other. "What you need now, is a bit of rest, and food. We can try again later."

"I've only just started." He didn't like the idea of quitting so early. Not when he'd finally been able to do something. "Suit yourself." If the man didn't want to be lifted, Alec was fine with that and understood it. But he refused to stop now. Instead he borrowed another chair and added that and a backpack as well, full of heavy books. He was starting to become a bit numb, but just a little longer...

"You're also sweating, and your hand is shaking. Keep it up, and you'll pass out." Loki pointed out, crossing his arms and watching his partner carefully.

"I'll be fine." Just a little while longer, just a little more-- His vision dims a little, his mouth goes dry and he gently lets the things down where they were, pulling at his collar with loose fingers as his heart thunders in his ears.

"See? I'm ...fine... " At least there is a chair nearby to break his fall.

Also a demigod with quick reflexes, who's been watching and waiting for this exact thing since he noticed Alec's hand trembling. Loki reaches out to grab the other by the upper arm and break his fall and help him into that chair. "I warned you."

"Mph." He felt like an old man. He buried his face in his hands, mostly to stop the room from spinning. "I need to be better than this.I can't get anywhere this way. Why is it so bloody difficult."

"Because if it were easy, everyone would do it." Loki responded, and moved to cross his arms again. Studying the other carefully, blue-green eyes analyzing what he could see. "I have experience with magic, even if this world's is new to me. You need to build up a reserve, learn what your energy levels are. When you have this type of reaction, you set yourself back."

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