i see the hazy sense unfold [ OPEN ]

[succored]

Who: Sora and new acquaintances!
When: Throughout
Where: Around the city, the Coven library.
What: Deliveries for Precogstichin', searching for mysterious animals in the city, and studying.
Warnings: Probably nothing, but will edit if anything comes up.

delivery for—
[ Fortunately, growing up and constantly traveling around a semi-claustrophobia-inducing city means Sora has a decent sense of direction and a good memory for buildings. But to use that memory, he has to learn first.

So he might be knocking on a few wrong doors. ]

Hi. Corset delivery.

in the library—
[ Having a practice only once a week isn't too often, but it does mean Sora has an actual schedule to follow that isn't intermittent shifts at a convenience store. He's trying to study as much as he can outside of class to make sure that he, and by extension Tora, are safe and prepared for whatever other weird stuff this world is going to throw at them.

And that means reading.

After some searching for words he can actually comprehend, Sora finds some books he thinks he can handle and carries them to a table. After only a few practices, he's struggling and visibly so. Magic isn't something he'd ever believed in.

Later, when he goes to return them to their places in the shelf, he's still looking down at the words when he rounds a corner and nearly walks into someone. ]

Oh. Sorry. [ He's just holding a stack almost up to his nose. ]

in the courtyard—
[ Sora's trouble with magic is manifesting in a more noticeable way, later in the Coven courtyard. He wants to protect himself with a barrier in theory. But what actually happens is the small amount of the magic in the barrier being redirected and shoving Sora back.

He falls on his butt with a quiet yelp. Embarrassing, but definitely not the most embarrassing thing that's happened to him. He starts getting up and dusting himself off. ]

Comments

[succored]

[ Yeah, he definitely hasn't read all of these books. The best he's gotten out of any of the books is a full chapter, maybe two. ]

I'm not looking things up, I'm trying to figure things out. [ Which... isn't happening but he's putting them back anyway. ] Do you need one of them?

[atouts]

That means the same thing. [ Childermass points out, though he also takes a step back and to the side to give Sora room to pass if need be. ] You're trying to figure things out by looking them up. A little too broadly, by the look of it...

[ He will point at one book in particular in the stack. Something along the lines of an introduction to defensive magic or the like. ]

That one, I believe. The one on basic defensive spells.

[succored]

I'm trying to read. [ But his attempts to defend himself are just quibbles at best, and he won't protest any further. Instead he follows the pointing of the stranger and starts trying to wiggle one book out of the stack.

It's the wrong one, because he can't see that well and the spines are facing away from him. ]

This one?

[atouts]

[ And Childermass is, perhaps, being too bristly. That Sora will try to help him get the book regardless gets him to lighten up a little, at least, even if the book he wiggles out of the stack does happen to be wrong. He takes the book even knowing that and looks at it, if only out of curiosity.

A new library, full of new books of magic, ones he's never seen. He can hardly get mad over it. ]

Universal Spells for the Young Witch. [ He reads the title aloud. ] Ah, no. Not the one I was looking for but... I may actually want to begin with this instead. The universal branch of witch magic sounds like the simplest to start with, judging from what else I've read here.

[succored]

It's supposed to be simple. [ Sora says this, but he doesn't even seem like he believes it. ]

You can have it too. I couldn't... get it.

[ He moves his fingers up to the spine of the next book. ]

Did you mean this one?

[atouts]

Yes, that's the one.

[ Sora's got it right this time and Childermass will move to help him pull it out of the stack once he starts trying to pull it out from between the rest of the books, the first book tucked under an arm for now. ]

I take it that you're new to magic?

[ Saying he couldn't get the simple spells is telling enough. ]

[succored]

[ With the power of teamwork, he's able to extract the book and take it from Sora's stack. ]

Yeah. You know stuff about it.

[ He sure acts like he does—which makes Sora ask more questions. ]

How did you learn?

[atouts]

[ He does act that way, doesn't he? Thankfully it's because he does know about magic. He adds the second book to the first tucked under his arm and thinks about the question for a moment. He doesn't exactly have the expected background for a magician, so... ]

In bits and pieces. I taught myself from the books of the actual magician I served when I could. Occasionally he would hand me a spell or two when he needed me to go and harass anyone he wasn't fond of. [ He doesn't sound particularly sorry about that, though not proud of it, either. It just is. ] I kept them for myself more often than not.

[ That said, he'll snag the book on universal spells back out from under his arm and hold it up. ]

None of what I learned works here, however, so I am back to this. Have you actually tried any of the spells in these books yet?

[succored]

I did earlier. The barrier ones.

[ There's no judgment about harassing people from this guy, who was for most of his life involved with organized crime of some sort or another. He merely follows him with an intensifying stare. ]

But it didn't work.

[atouts]

Do you remember what the spell was asking you to do?

[ He could go searching the book for it now but knowing what it says there and knowing how it was understood aren't always alike. ]

[succored]

To make a barrier in front of me.

[ The other details of it are a bit less clear after taking a fall. ]

There were some other instructions, but I didn't really get those either.

[atouts]

If it's anything like what else I've been looking up, most of it entails picturing what you want your magic to do and then pushing the magic into that form.

[ That most of it lacks some material requirement for the spell outside of alchemy marks it as quite different from what Childermass is used to, although he supposes that makes it simpler for witches, new and old alike. In any case, now he'll pull the book back out from under his arm and go paging through it.

Shields, shields, shields... ]

I've done a shield before but it was in the face some needing to block something fairly dangerous. [ Sora probably doesn't want a wall of angry tree branches flying towards him though, but something smaller? Less awful? ] Actually needing to stop an object from hitting you could help. Some learn better that way.

[succored]

[ The way he says it makes the process sound matter-of-fact, simple, and easy. Three things that it is not to Sora. ]

You want to throw stuff at me?

[ maybe the urgency would make him picture it better. ]

We could try that...

[atouts]

Only as a last resort and only if you're willing to be a target. I would not throw things at someone on a whim.

[ But before they even try working out the shield spell, there's the matter of Sora's book stack. Childermass nods to those first. ] Let's get those put away first. You won't be doing much magic with your hands full.

[succored]

[ Nice of him to say so. Sora nods, slowly and then faster at the instruction. ]

You can start with throwing less dangerous things.

[ Small rocks aren't too dangerous! But hefting the books, Sora nods and starts going towards a table, but he stops almost mid-step. ]

Do you want to look at these with me?

[atouts]

[ Smalls rocks aren't dangerous, no, but not everyone appreciates being pelted with them! But as Sora turns to head for a table and pauses to ask that, Childermass tilts his head slightly, considering, and then nods. He has books to read himself, after all. ]

May as well. Two witches puzzling them out has to be better than one.

[succored]

Okay.

[ He considers himself a poor excuse for a witch, certainly, but he has read some of the books already and he knows where he wants to start. ]

They keep saying that you should feel the magic. What does that mean?

[atouts]

That you should be feeling some sort of power when you try to do magic. [ Which is kind of obvious. Childermass isn't sure how else to describe it. ] I suppose if you focus on one minor spell long enough, you might be able to feel what they mean.

[ Of course, there's also that one other way to figure it out, but— ]

Or wait until the magic builds up too much for you not to pay attention, although based on what the local witches say, that isn't the greatest of plans.

[succored]

[ Feeling uncertain, and visibly dithering, Sora's brow furrows more deeply and he stares down at the book. ]

I feel—something. But I don't know how to get it out without doing something bad. I don't want to break anything or hurt someone.

[atouts]

[ That's an odd thing to say and Childermass can't help but raise an eyebrow at Sora for it. ]

Has magic worked for you when doing one of those things?

[succored]

No.

[ Well, actually— ] I haven't tried. I don't want it to work if I do that.

[ He shakes his head, looking over the pages without really absorbing the words. ]

There's magic like that. I heard the Witch explaining it.

[atouts]

[ Magic like that? Childermass carries on giving Sora a curious look. ]

Do you mean when a Witch has too much magic built up and goes mad?

[succored]

[ The inquisitive look doesn't make Sora flinch any more than the thought of having small rocks thrown at him did, at least! He simply nods and circles his fingertips aimlessly on the paper. ]

I heard someone talking about it. About how they'd 'deal' with it.

[atouts]

And how is it that they would deal with it?

[ Because aside from a bond with a monster, he isn't sure what the other options are. Assuming, of course, there are any other options beyond 'explode'. ]

[succored]

Well, she said... she said she'd just kill them. Or herself. I think that's what she meant.

[ Sora didn't like hearing that, even though it made sense. Maybe made too much sense. ]

I guess some people just don't want to Bond with someone, or they can't.