[open] on rocks i dreamt of where we stepped

[scowlish]

Who: onni hotakainen; open
When: throughout aguril
Where: various
What: catch-all and quests for the month
Warnings: tba in subject lines



Prompts in the comments, marked open or closed. Hit me up by PM, discord (coffee #6251), plurk (caffemisto), or with a comment on my cr meme post if you want a specialized starter or to plot in advance!

I'm writing prompts in brackets style but if you prefer prose feel free, I'll respond in kind.

Prompt Links.

i. building supplies: scavenging wood to build a sauna, various places in the city

ii. picnic serenades: wandering in the gardens, offering to play music for picnickers

iii. out of the city: general medical care and fighting in the outer city

Comments

Medical Aid

[proudofme]

[Soren had never had magic of his own back home, nor had he wanted it, not really. Becoming a witch was more a crisis than anything, but he took it in stride. No other choice, really. He had to learn some way to use it up or he'd get the jitters.

Or explode.

Since his main issue with the Dark Magic is father used was how much it could hurt people, he took up healing as a specialty of sorts. He's actually pretty good at it! He strides over when he sees Onni motioning for some help, ]

What's going on with her? Fever? I can handle that! [confident! Maybe a bit too boisterous of an energy for the tone of the room. He'll spot the infected wound and look to her after, putting a nice, brotherly tone]

I'm going to get you allll patched up, okay? It might hurt just a little, but I have to touch it. You're going to feel much, much! Better after.

[scowlish]

[Back in Finland, magic had been commonplace. The military had used it for almost everything - protection, defense, fighting trolls and beasts, and even healing. That hadn't been a priority, though, very few mages had bothered to learn much healing, let alone focus on it. Onni had known a bit, but not that much. In retrospect, probably he should have learned more.

It's something he's interested in trying out now that he's here and has less to worry about. For now, though, all he has is his knowledge of herbal treatments and general care of the sick. So when the younger man comes over to ask about the girl and say he can handle it, Onni shifts to the side and nods.]

Ah, yeah. It's a fever, because of an infection in her wound. I've been applying this poultice to try to pull out some of the infection. It's worked a little, but the fever won't go down.

[But the other man is already going on, talking quietly to the little girl, reassuring her that he'll get her patched up and explaining how it will work. Onni falls quiet, watching him as he works, eyes flicking between the young man and the child.]

Will you use magic?

[proudofme]

Sure will! I've gotten pretty good at it. Healing magic. At least. [not really any other kind, but he didn't want to start meddling with anything that reminded him of his father's dark magic. Sure, that could b used to heal, but it was always at the expense of something else. Healing here was much less... morally messy.

Soren seats himself into place and puts his hand tenderly on the wound, before the glow of magic starts up. The girl's discomfort seems to wane gradually, though the fever will take a little while to fully clear up. Soren looks to his company for the time, since it'll be a bit. Might as well make... friends? Maybe?]

You also fall out of one of those mirrors?

[scowlish]

Ah. I'll watch what you do, then. I'd like to learn it.

[And once the younger man gets beside the girl and places his hand on the wound, Onni does as he said he'd do. He watches carefully, trying to work out the particular way that this type of magic is done. Without hearing any kind of incantation or spoken words, it's a bit difficult to follow, though he can see the glow forming between the hand and the wound.

He can also see the effect it's having on the girl, he watches as she starts to relax a little, her eyes sinking shut in a way they hadn't been able to when she was still in acute pain. Glancing up at the question, he nods solemnly.]

Yes. Nearly two months ago now. You?

[proudofme]

Me.... uh. Huh! I lost track of time. More than a couple months, though. Feels like a while, but it's kinda a blur, y'know? Like it feels like a suuuper long time, even though it hasn't been. [everything is new and it's pretty overwhelming, but Soren also likes the distraction of it all. Plenty of novelty to get lost in.

Like learning how to heal with just a touch. That's pretty sick! Or. Well. It's literally making someone well.]

I've spent like the whole time learning this healing thing. You also a witch?

[scowlish]

Yes. I haven't been here that long, but it's felt the same way. Too long and no time at all, at the same time.

[That is something Onni isn't sure whether he likes or not. He's never been the type to seek out new and exciting experiences, and he finds them more stressful than distracting. But this place is actually more sedate than his home, safer and more secure, if more confusing.

When the boy takes a moment to respond and ask him a question, Onni shifts his gaze up to his face, thoughtful.]

I'm a witch, yes. Back home, it was called being a mage, so I still call myself that. So how do you do that, the healing? You're good at it.

[proudofme]

I hear you, man... [it's so much like that, Soren has totally lost track. A few months though, he knows that's roughly correct, because he's been learning all this healing stuff for a while. Even though he was a terrible student with any kind of book learning, he'd found as many practical teachers as he could between the Coven and the Wilders. When he could get out and do something, he's very talented!]

I was a knight back home. Well, still a knight! But now with magic. Magi-knight, I guess. Mostly been learning from the other Wilders-

[In this case, he's just cracked into more advanced healing techniques. While basic magic worked to sooth the girl, it wasn't going to break her fever or actually save her. He needed to something more than stabilize her...]

I just learned this move, it's a bit gross. Do you have something sharp? I need to use some of my blood to fix her up for good. It's worth it, I got plenty. [you know, blood!!]

[scowlish]

[When the other young man says he was a knight back home and still is here, Onni's brows raise and he makes a soft 'hm' noise in his throat. It's interesting because there wasn't really a call for that sort of thing at home, and it's always a little fascinating to hear about how other worlds work.]

We didn't exactly have Knights where I come from. I guess because there was no royalty or anything to protect. I've read stories about them though.

[But the matter of the healing is more important in the moment. Glancing down, he watches as the girl remains still and quiet, but is shivering with chills from the fever. When the knight mentions a new thing he can do and says he needs blood to make it work, Onni blinks. He's heard of that kind of thing, with Icelandic mages, so it isn't that surprising, really.

Making a little grunt of assent, he draws his dagger and quickly grabs a cotton puff with disinfecting fluid on it so he can clean the tip, then holds it out handle-first.]

Here.

[proudofme]

Thanks. [he takes the blade and picks a softer spot on his palm. His hands are clearly calloused and worked up from his lifetime so far of knightly training. Cutting just enough to draw blood, he returns his hands to the young girl to heal her with increased focus. The more advanced technique doesn't appear all that effective... until it suddenly does.

He might have gotten the mental incantation wrong a couple times before figuring it out proper. But! There we are! The magic glows intensely and the child lets out a sigh of relief, cured.

Soren, immediately tired out by the spell, sits back down heavily beside Onni. He turns his hand over, looking at it, still bleeding. Sounding rough around the edges, he lifts it towards the other man who said he could heal.]

Hey... help me out with this? I mean, could you... please. [trying to be polite! He's just very tired, self healing felt like too much... even just throwing a bandage on it wouldn't get a complaint from him, really. He could deal with it later]

[scowlish]

No problem.

[He watches the proceedings with interest, as the younger man pricks at his palm and draws a little blood before going back to his healing. It's a quiet sort of magic, he's not speaking out loud, but his hands make a soft glow that brightens abruptly and then the little girl is exhaling a relieved little sigh and falling into a comfortable sleep.

Eyes widening a little, Onni looks back up at the other young man.]

Impressive. And yes, yes, of course.

[Honestly, the politeness doesn't matter much to Onni, he's always been a blunt sort of person after all. Reaching out, he takes the wounded hand in his and gets some antibacterial ointment on a cotton ball, carefully dabbing it over the cut and then pressing the cotton against his skin to stem the slight bleeding.]

That was a very good spell. Do you think you'd be interested in teaching me how to do it?

[proudofme]

Yeah, pretty cool, right? I never thought I'd be able to heal someone like that... y'know, not really a knight thing. [but he's very pleased by it! Magic makes him uncomfortable in concept, but being able to heal using it is a good feeling. Soren likes to help, it felt natural to add this to his knightly duties]

Well, I'm also still learning. If you wanna tag along to the Coven with me, sure! Or you could go out with the Wilders, that's mostly where I've been learning. Not great with going to classes, but on the field I get practice. [very much a hands on kind of learner, Soren. When he can get the practice he's pretty quick! Studying from a book or a lecture just isn't the same...]

[scowlish]

It seems like it'd be useful in the field, if you're fighting or exploring or whatever. Maybe it should be a knight thing.

[Onni nods at those suggestions - he's been to the Coven, of course, but there's only so much he can learn from lectures and abstract theory. He's always been taught magic by demonstration and hands-on instruction, and that has continued to be his style here. The mention of going out with the Wilders to learn sounds interesting, if somewhat intimidating.]

I wouldn't mind going to the Coven, but I learn better hands-on. Is it very dangerous with the Wilders? Do a lot of people get infected?

[proudofme]

It's dangerous, yeah. But! The field stuff is a lot more useful than burying your nose into a book. Even trainees can help out when you're out there learning hand on. [exhausting as the magic may be, Soren likes the hard work and the danger. It made him feel useful! That's not everybody's deal, though]

If you're not a risk taking kinda guy, better to stick with Coven lessons.