[Irena/Nova] - wrong

[shardstorm]

Who: Irena, Nova
When: Monday, 08
Where: Irena's apartment, Fall City
Before/After: NA
Warnings: TBA

Getting sick had distracted her from thinking about other things. It had been good, in a way, but now that she was better, those Things came back to mind. Things she needed to talk to someone about, but she wasn't sure who to talk to about them.

Nova was there, though. They'd talked about a lot of things in the past. They'd discussed their research, shared their experiments and results, even complained about things going wrong. Things had been different since she'd become a mage. A part of her wondered why.

Did it have to do with her being 'dumb'?

After much consideration, she decided to ask him about it. She came out of her room, holding her tablet under an arm. Bunny lay sleeping on the back of the couch, and she walked over to rub at his ears while looking at Nova, trying to peek over his shoulder.

"Are you busy?" she asked softly.

Comments

[shardstorm]

It made her smile a little wider, remembering the penguin, and her trip to the zoo where she'd found it. She knew what zoos were now, but before hadn't had a clue, thinking they were some sort of farm for exotic meats. She'd only brought the penguin because Reilanin had asked for Earth meat, but she'd kept the penguin.

Irena pondered checking in on Reilanin to see how the penguin was.

"I've learned a lot more," she said. "More magic. It's... difficult. Slow. I think maybe it would be easier if... If I weren't..." She couldn't bring herself to say it again. "But there is still much it can do, things I had never tried before."

[taking_names]

"What sorts of things do you want to learn to do?" he asked.

Maybe it would get her mind off of her limitations.

And besides, it would probably be interesting. Irena's magic really was impressive, for all her setbacks.

[shardstorm]

"I am learning, ah... Illusions and transmogrification." She held her left hand up, indicating the crystal on her wrist. "I started learning when I came to Earth, to change the shape of things. I was told that I should hide that I was a mage, but it was the only way to hide my staff without leaving it behind." And she had certainly not been about to leave her staff behind somewhere. She wasn't even sure she'd have been able to; the thing followed her around wherever she went.

"Illusions are interesting. To make images of things that are not there. Manipulating light. It... It is difficult. I can only do small things, still." Mostly because most of her focus had been on enchanting lately. If things didn't take so long to learn, she'd be far better at it by now...

[taking_names]

"Oh--" He blinked at the crystal. "That explains a lot, actually."

He hadn't even thought about the fact that he'd never seen her with her staff on earth.

"What have you been able to make an illusion of?"

[shardstorm]

Irena brightened. "Lots of things! But they are small, ah, 'party tricks'."

She sat upright and put her hands out, palms up, and reached her magic out to shape the light. She'd gotten good enough that it didn't take much effort to conjure up little examples, and a shimmering unicorn appeared above her hands, its tail giving a swish as it looked towards Nova. If it weren't for the fact that it was no bigger than a kitten, it might have seemed real.

[taking_names]

"It's so tiny," he said, impressed rather than dismissive. She'd done all the details smaller, too, which seemed like it might have been difficult.

He tried to touch it, to see what would happen.

[shardstorm]

Interrupting the light, Nova's fingers sent shimmering ripples through the image. It made Irena giggle, just a bit, before she released the image, the unicorn vanishing in a shower of confetti-like sparkles of light that faded quickly.

"I can only do tiny ones, yet. I want to make bigger ones, but it is difficult to learn." Once again reminded of her limits, she frowns.

[taking_names]

He let out a little 'ahh' as the image shifted and disappeared, before looking up at her.

"I liked it. I bet you could play excellent jokes on people with illusions. Even small ones."

Did Irena play jokes...?

[shardstorm]

"Ah... I wanted to put on a magic show, but I was told that people would be afraid of mages here more than in Zenderael..."

Which was totally different from playing jokes. Unless you incorporated jokes into the magic show.

She probably wouldn't know how, though.

[taking_names]

He frowned a little.

"Haven't they gotten used to them by now?" It sounded like the earthers were just being unwelcoming at this point.

Because of course he had been completely welcoming to all things earth when he had been in Zenderael.

[shardstorm]

She shrugged. "Many in Zenderael are still afraid of us, because they know what we can do." Or, at least, had some idea of what mages could do. Perhaps it was because they didn't know what mages could do... The only ones who knew and understood a mage's limitations were the mage, really.

"I wonder if children would be afraid," she considered. "They might like a magic show?"

[taking_names]

"I'd hope so," Nova said. Children ought to be less set in their ways, whatever those ways happened to be.

"Do you think you might try?"

[shardstorm]

That took some thinking. She actually had... no experience when it came to children, and no idea what they'd even like to see. And then there was the fact that parents who were afraid of mages probably wouldn't want their kids going to a magic show...

She shook her head. It was just too much to worry about. "I will just keep practicing." But she smiled. "Maybe I can show you some of it? And I can do more enchantments now, if you need."

[taking_names]

"Yes, I'd like to see more of it."

Actually, given their living arrangement, he might wind up present for her practice anyhow.

"Maybe you could do a show just for Marlene and I. It wouldn't take so much planning."

[shardstorm]

Irena perked up at the prospect, suddenly forgetting her angst. She liked having Marlene visit! "Yes! And maybe we could have pizza again!" Because pizza was tasty.

[taking_names]

"That would be nice."

...And probably less awkward discussion, this time...

[shardstorm]

She smiled wide, and gave Nova a tight hug. "Maybe this weekend. I have lots I have been practicing!"