catch-all (partly open; partly closed)

[catasstrophy]

Who: Konoe and friends acquaintances (and enemies, and whatever)
When: May
Where: ~around~
What: All the things! So far: herb quest with Dylas; Mrs. Mitten quest with... you?
Warnings: The general stupidity of a catboy chasing a cat? 🙀 Will edit as things come up.
Feel free to use the format/tense you're most comfortable with! I will happily adapt.
If you want to wildcard me for whatever, go right ahead. You're likely to find Konoe around the city, following the magic classes the coven's giving, maybe attempting some very minor magic in a secluded spot, sitting on a rooftop looking out over the city and trying not to feel lonely, or... very much lost because he has no sense of direction.

[closed] HERBOLOGY HELP

It's not for the reward that Konoe does this; in fact, he's not sure what the reward even is. But he's been wanting to take a look at the forest, even if it's supposed to be dangerous, and this gives him the perfect excuse to finally do it. And, since he's not alone... he doesn't have to worry about getting lost either. (Shut up.)

It's strange how much the forest feels comfortable and familiar, yet something about it is still very much off. The smell of the trees and plants is not so different than that of the world he grew up in, but there's definitely something odd on top of that, very faint and sickly sweet, yet anything but sweet at the same time. That's new. The Void never smelled like anything... but then, that only made it more dangerous.

This still feels more like home than a city ever could. Konoe appreciates the comforts of a city, but it's hard to beat scents for nostalgia.

"Follow the river in the forest, it said..." And that's what they're doing. "Do you think it's much further?" He doesn't mind either way. He's just trying to make conversation, in his own way - and perhaps trying to calm down somewhat, with that eerie sickly sweet scent lightly prickling at his nose.


[open] MRS. MITTENS

In a city full of magic and monsters, there's a wide variety of things one should expect to see, and very little that should surprise you. Even so, the sight in front of you may raise a few eyebrows.

"Hey - wait!" There's a young man with a tail and cat ears, his hood long since fallen off his head and flapping behind him like the rest of his mantle. He's running at a pretty impressive speed, jumping obstacles... and perhaps knocking over a thing or two (hopefully not a person or two) in the process, oops.

That's not really the noteworthy thing here, though. The strangest thing to note is that he's chasing... a cat. The catboy is chasing a cat.

"I'll give you milk, so come here already!" He remembers that these Cats are supposed to like milk. He has still not accepted that they apparently - supposedly - can't talk, though... and even if he did, he expects them to at least understand what he's saying.

Clearly this particular Cat is just very rude.

Comments

[catasstrophy]

Oh... Oh, no - she's actually giving him food?! He wouldn't have wanted to ask for it, but getting it without asking... feels even more embarrassing? He wonders if he should do the easy thing and just say no... but the fork is right there, and the food really does smell good...

His ears swivel aside a little as he takes the fork and spears some stirfry. Maybe if he just doesn't say anything, he can pretend there's no reason to be embarrassed about accepting her kindness.

"I guess... magic for protection?" It's telling, perhaps, that he thinks about guarding himself - and others! - before anything else. "Making light would be good, too, and maybe -..." Hng, that really is embarrassing... He eats his bite of food to buy himself some time, pondering how much he should tell her. "... talking to animals... might be good." And also weird, when he sees a mouse and can't resist pouncing it, but, you know.

"... It's really good." The food.

[topslug]

Just accepting the food without comment seems to satisfy Yako, but it's the compliment that has her outright beaming at him.

"Thanks! I wasn't sure if you'd like it, but I don't know what kind of food you have where you're from." While Yako pretty obviously eats essentially whatever she can get her hands on. On the topic of magic, though ... she doesn't seem to find any of his choices odd, and she mulls it over.

"I think any of those would be good," she says, after a moment. "It seems like it's pretty dangerous outside the city, and animals can go a lot of places people can't! You might find out something interesting that way." Though she personally doubts Konoe was thinking of animal interrogation when he brought it up. "Light might be the easiest to start with ... we learned a spell for that last class, didn't we?"

And Yako promptly failed to perform it, but. Details.

[catasstrophy]

"We have all sorts of food. But ever since hunting became dangerous, there's been more focus on fruit." Something which he happens to applaud. If he could live on kuim for the rest of his life, he's pretty sure he could die happy.

Konoe definitely hadn't ever considered animal interrogation in his life, but that's definitely a good practical excuse that he will use forever after. Still, talking to animals is definitely the iffiest of all his magic foci, complicated on multiple levels, and starting (much) smaller is definitely better. Protection and healing are no doubt the most useful, but also very complicated, and hard to practice effectively. Light is definitely the better choice.

"Yeah." He's just. Gonna sneakily eat some more, like the ninja he is. "I couldn't do it, but... I think maybe I tried it the wrong way."

He'd always produced threads of light when he Sang, so that feeling was what he'd tried to reproduce. He could have predicted that that would never work.

[topslug]

Yako takes another bite of food herself, chewing contemplatively. Was it more dangerous because of the monsters he’d mentioned before? Not that she has anything against fruit, but she doesn’t think she could live off it for her whole life.

“I think I’d probably like to learn magic that has something to do with food.” Yeah, that’s like, the biggest shock to no one. “In my dream, someone used a spell to help find the direction we needed to go ... and I helped strengthen her magic, somehow.”

She blinks suddenly, looking up.

“What if we tried that? Not the spell to find things, I mean, but helping each other instead of just watching?”

[catasstrophy]

"Food magic...?" He's not shocked, nope. But he's a little surprised all the same, only because he hadn't thought of that much. He's no cook, himself (keep your fire away from him, thankyouverymuch), but this suddenly makes him wonder: if they create things with magic, could he maybe create kuim?

It's a glorious prospect, and one he'll practice very hard for - in private, some other time. Meanwhile, helping with magic is basically the one 'magic' he's ever done in his own world, so he's more than happy to try doing the same here. Even if it will no doubt be very different from his Singing, it feels a little more possible than anything else.

"Sure. Do you want to do the helping? Since you managed before." And since he doesn't want to have another case where he inadvertently tries to copy his old Singing and fails. "We can switch afterwards."

[topslug]

"I can do that," Yako agrees. First, though, she's going to have to stop eating, so with a touch of regret, she puts her fork down. Being able to help Konoe with this -- hopefully! -- is exciting, though, so she's determined to give it a good effort.

"Can you give me your hands?" She scoots over a little closer and holds out hers palm-up, arms relaxed. "It seemed like I had to touch someone to get it to work, first. Do you want me to talk through the spell the way they taught us?"

She'd gone over it enough times in her mind, anyway, she just hadn't had much success at implementing it.

[catasstrophy]

Okay... Yeah. He's just going to put his hands in hers, then, careful to keep his claws aimed at thin air. (They may not be extended now, but if something happens to shock him, he doesn't want to hurt her! Magic is still pretty unpredictable to him.) In fact... he'll just keep his hands palm-up, and pretty close together. It seems a lot easier to focus magic with his hands than to aim it somewhere random.

"Sure." He remembers the spell well enough, but hearing it again can't hurt. He's actually kind of nervous, now... Maybe he should have played support after all, and hope it would have been less pressure? But he's made his choice now, and he's going to have to learn doing this by himself after all... This is probably better.

i'm totally just making this up as i go so 8')

[topslug]

"All right." Yako cups her hands over Konoe's, letting him feel the support of her presence physically and -- hopefully soon -- magically.

"You start by, um, picturing the sort of light you want to create in your mind," she recites. Magic class had been more conducive to not spacing out than gardening, at least, but she could only wish for the composure of the Witch that had been instructing them. "Light is all around us, but this is a light you're creating from the energy of your own magic. Find the source of that magic inside you, then bend your will to shaping it."

As she speaks, her breath slows and her voice gains confidence, her gaze focused on watching their joined hands, trying to reach for the same feeling she had in the dream -- the confidence to use her magic to strengthen and sharpen someone else's focus, to pull on their own source of magic inside.

"Okay, now say the words after me." She murmurs the short incantation quietly, squeezing Konoe's hands briefly in reassurance. Her hands are warm against Konoe's hands -- maybe getting warmer? -- but she doesn't notice that, for now, too focused on trying to do ... whatever it was she'd managed, last time.

that is the only way to rp at the best of times tbh

[catasstrophy]

Picturing the sort of light he wants to create... Is it bad to go with the light he is used to from his Singing, there? No - it's just light, so that's fine, right?

He's overthinking this, probably, nervous for no good reason. The times when he's been under pressure to perform have been few and far between, mostly in life or death situations when there was no chance to overthink anything, even if he'd wanted to. This is different. Not only does he not want to disappoint Yako, but he also wants to prove that he can do this magic thing to the world in general.

He's not a Monster. Maybe there's nothing wrong with Monsters, but he still isn't one - he's a cat - and proving that feels important.

But at least that's not something he needs to prove to Yako so much as the world in general. He lets out a breath, closing his eyes in an attempt to focus on the feeling of magic. It's barely a flicker, but he feels her magic a lot more, and that helps him fan his own, somehow. Still refusing to look, he focuses on creating a little ball of light in his hands, repeating the words after her.

He's barely started the incantation before he succeeds, her words and assistance apparently enough already to do the trick, though the barely-floating ball of light does grow bigger with his words, from something like a pebble to something closer to a medium-sized fruit.

this is a startlingly wholesome friendship already

[topslug]

Konoe can do this. That's the thought Yako keeps in her mind, the confidence in her new friend's ability that he may not have himself, right now. All he needs to do is know he can do it at least once, and then--

When she starts seeing the glimmer of light out of the edge of her vision, she looks up carefully, as though moving too quickly might frighten it away. But there's no doubt about it: the light is there, manifested in the cradle their hands make together, and she takes a breath or two before she speaks quietly.

"Now open your eyes." Her hands have noticeably warmed against the backs of his hands now, but its not uncomfortably hot, steadying his focus in the anticipation. Despite the calmness of her voice, when Konoe opens his eyes, he'll also find her grinning widely at him across the ball of light.

"You did it."

i didn't think he could do it, let alone so quickly. yako is just that good

[catasstrophy]

He opens his eyes when she tells him to - something he'll choose not to think about later, embarrassing as it is to just follow orders like that - and even though he didn't really doubt his success as such... it's still another thing entirely to see it. The moment he does, the ball of light flares up, and he has to focus to keep it from exploding altogether.

"We really... did it."

He's not sure himself why he's so shocked, but he is. Maybe there's a difference between thinking he can do it and believing it, after all.

It's her turn now, and he knows it, but he doesn't want to end the moment just yet.

"Can you... let go?" He wants to see if he can keep it up by himself, now that they've gotten it started.

[topslug]

Yako can sympathize with that need for independence all too well -- the need to see for yourself that you have the strength and ability to do something on your own, without wondering if you're only succeeding because someone else is propping you up.

"Of course," she says, still smiling broadly. Her hands move off Konoe's, but not all at once, like she's slowly letting him go to carry a weight on his own instead of shocking him with an abrupt departure. Not that she's sure that's how magic really works, but it helps somewhat to think of it that way, like her mind still needs the analogies she's familiar with even if magic doesn't at all obey the laws of physics.

[catasstrophy]

He maintains the ball of light for a moment or two, three longer, growing more confident in the feeling. It's steady, too - but then he has to undo it. If they could make it, though... surely undoing it is easier?

It's like popping a bubble, in a way: he just gives a little poke to let the magic forming the ball of light disperse again, and that's exactly what it does. Maybe it was just a short experiment, but he doesn't want to push his luck - and he wants Yako to have a chance to try, too.

"Your turn."

[topslug]

Yako can't help but sigh when the light dissipates -- but with Konoe offering to take over her role, she supposes it's not as though he could be expected to keep it up forever.

"Right." Tucking up a bit of hair behind one ear, she brings her hands in front of her again, nose screwing up with determination. She's never had much luck with this before, but Konoe's success makes her want to try her best, too! "Um ... I don't think you need to do it the same way I did. Do what feels right for you."

[catasstrophy]

"Right..." What feels right for him, though? He's never done anything like this before coming here, so 'right' is a very nebulous concept.

He puts his hands under hers, thinking about a way to make this his own. Maybe that's not easy, but it's the only way he'll ever get any good at this magic anyway, right? He'll just have to do it.

"... I'm not going to say the incantation out loud. If that's okay."

His Singing never used his voice, either, and that was different for every singing cat: maybe that will be something he does with this world's magic, too.

[topslug]

Yako waits for Konoe to figure out what he's comfortable with, though his question seems to surprise her a little -- it certainly draws a smile.

"That's definitely okay," she assures him. "I'm going to start trying now."

With that much warning given, it's a matter of closing her eyes and concentrating, trying to find that elusive pull of magic in her. Given how out of her experience magic is -- demons and the like aside -- associating magic with herself is still difficult.

[catasstrophy]

Even if Yako isn't associating magic with herself, Konoe still is. He knows her, and he knows she has magic. He also knows that they were able to pull this off together just before, so he absolutely believes that they can do it this way around, as well.

He closes his eyes as well, feeling her hands in his. The warmth of them is comfortable, more than just physical somehow, and he focuses on adding to it, giving the feeling a little push by focusing on thinking of that incantation.

If he doesn't, like, burn their hands, it will be successful?? Thankfully the incantation will probably save them from any damage.

[topslug]

Even as she runs over the words of the incantation in her head, Yako's already thinking, trying to imagine what she can try to do differently. When she'd tried this before, she couldn't summon so much as a twinkle between her hands. She feels the warmth of Konoe's hands against her own, and that's pleasantly grounding, something that reminds her she isn't alone.

Maybe making a ball of light isn't in the cards for her, but what if she tried a different kind of light instead? She bites her bottom lip briefly before she starts to recite the spell, concentrating on the image she wants to produce in her mind's eye.

Nothing very much happens, at first. And then slowly, one by one, small motes of light begin to lazily drift up from their joined hands, more like small fireflies lazily taking flight than the same concentrated light that Konoe was producing before.

[catasstrophy]

It takes a moment, but Konoe is uncharacteristically patient, even as he opens his eyes and stares at Yako's hands in his: he has absolute confidence in Yako's ability to do this. If she needs a little bit of time to find her way, then that only makes sense: Konoe thinks nothing of it. He doesn't do more than he did before, just keeping up his steady support the best way he knows how. Maybe it isn't much, but it's solid, unmovable. For someone trying to find their own way, that seems best.

He's not disappointed, either. The first little speck of light confirms his trust, but when more and more of them appear, he gasps in utter awe. Okay, so it's not a concentrated ball of light - but it's a million times more beautiful, and he's absolutely mesmerized.

eventually they'll discover how to make magic laser pointers and then konoe will die

[topslug]

The sound he makes has Yako opening her eyes quickly, worried that something's gone wrong -- only for her to gasp in turn. In her case, it's less about being caught by the sight, and more struck by what it means. She is a Witch, after all. She can do magic.

She doesn't say anything for a moment, though her own surprise has already cut off the spell, startling her out of holding her concentration. It seems the particles of light don't have much trouble persisting on their own a little longer, though whether that's because of the effort both of them have put into their respective spells or simply a quirk of her own casting is hard to tell, but the lights settle on their clothes and hair for now, and Yako stifles a laugh before leaning forward, turning her hands so she can clasp Konoe's and leaning in to whisper like it's some great big secret.

"Looks like we can do magic, after all."

NGL HE'S ALREADY INTO THE SPARKLIES but needs more movement, yes (please make this happen)

[catasstrophy]

It's a strange but beautiful experience, like standing right in the middle of a starry sky. The lights settle here and there, and that's both funny and kind of pretty in ways Konoe had never put much thought into before.

She grabs his hands, and he can't help a smile, as sincere as it is faux-conspiratorial.

"Obviously."

Said as if it's the most normal thing in the world. But the fact that they both know it isn't - shouldn't be, for them - is what makes it such a fun inside joke.

future witch hangouts just turn into konoe tripping on his own private planetarium

[topslug]

The moment's one of triumph for both of them, and so Yako will let them savor it for a little longer, having to press a hand against her mouth to stifle a giggle at Konoe's cockiness. She's used to a certain amount of strangeness in her life, for certain, but this is still on another level of extraordinary, even if she knows it's the very simplest of what magic in this world can accomplish.

In a few seconds, most of the lights have faded, though there's one still twinkling on one of Konoe's ears and in Yako's hair. The urge to brush it off is put on hold for a moment though, as Yako's expression grows a bit more sober as her hands slowly slide away from his.

"I guess we have to learn how to, right? You know, so we don't..." Is there a nice way to say 'blow up'? There really isn't. But the risks of underutilized magic potential, abstract as it may be to apply it to themselves, have been made pretty explicit.

omg he would literally die, send help

[catasstrophy]

"Yeah. If we're going to do it, we can't do it halfway."

There's probably some way to avoid magical explosions, if you never try magic at all - much of the population is like that, it seems - but that's only if you never use magic. And Konoe wants to use it. Not using magic in a world like this feels like too much of a handicap. He wants to be able to defend himself, even if it requires fighting fire with fire.
... Or, you know. Less scary things than that.

He's not worried about exploding, himself. It seems straightforward enough to use magic and so avoid going supernova: it's not exactly a complicated process they have to go through. Maybe if he witnesses such an explosion at some point, he'll feel differently, but for now? It's theoretical knowledge that barely affects him.

[topslug]

Yako nods in agreement. She has her own worries about the matter, of course, with a personality much more inclined to takes warnings seriously -- but his certainty bolsters her own confidence some, making her sit up a little straighter.

Though the next subject she brings up might be potentially even more uncomfortable than potentially going supernova.

"So does that mean you're going to take a Bond?"

[catasstrophy]

Uncomfortable? Maybe not, but that Bond thing is certainly a little weird. Only a little, though.

Konoe's next exhale comes out a little too loud at the start, like he started to say something already but realized he didn't know the right thing to say. He takes another breath, buying himself some time to think.

"Probably. Since it's important." That's the logical part of himself talking, small as it is, but it doesn't begin to scratch the surface of what he feels about the topic. "I don't think that's something to do on a whim, though." Bonding itself never is, of course, but he's mostly talking about choosing who to bond with. "I don't want to do it just to get it over with, either."

If he's going to take a Bond, he wants it to be something that works for both parties, something they're both committed to. Maybe he's setting his standards too high, though...