aterat | Winter log

Entry tags:

Winter log

Who: Everyone!
What: Open Log
When: December
Where: The Hunter's Lodge
Warnings: N/A
Notes: This is a mingle log, so people are free to set up their own TLs under it. So tag in and tag around!

Snow has fallen outside and while it's not heavy it's set just enough down to gently cover the wooden benches and ground outside. The chairs have been removed but the lanterns are still out and lit (as well as the little lights that have been replaced with more festive ones) if people want to walk around outside and have private chats among the snow, the trees and the lighting.

Potluck - Food is all around. Got a story about how the food you brought is part of a long standing family tradition? So much the better! But Ignis for his part has been researching and working on bringing the foods he's heard about. So here you'll find an appetizer platter along with a cream cheese tree, turkey, ham, his version of the Crown City roast, stuffing balls, roasted potatoes and roasted vegetables, and of course a few different desserts.

So you can find him making sure the table is decked out in christmas colours and full of food. But as he sets the last appetizer tree down on the table, he nods. "Quite glad to see that you could make it."

Trim a tree A small group of freshly cut green trees are sitting in a corner with room to go around the back. Simple lights are already in place, but there are ornaments with hooks sitting in silent invitation to decorate the tree and gather around as well as different coloured garland too.

But there's plenty of supplies and being able to decorate a tree with Nida last year was all sorts of fun as it will be again this year. So the advisor is definitely happy that nature can come inside at least temporarily.

Ignis stands back and takes a look at the trees with a satisfied sort of nod. "I suppose after the holiday, I will see about replanting it outside." Turning to his guest, there's an easy smile. "It won't do to simply throw it away do you think?"

Gift exchange - Gifts aren't required, but people are free to do so. This can be as private or as public as wished! The royal strategist is busy arranging gifts under the tree, trying to make some sense as to how they should be grouped, so he's on his knees trying to keep the order straight. As soon as someone approaches, he acknowledges their presence with a smile. "Would you mind handing me that blue wrapped gift sitting on the chair right next to you?"

Wild card- Dancing? Snowball fights outside? Feel free to make up a thing here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A year? Fuck.

"You're an old hand at this too then," Nida sighed. He felt bad for her. He didn't like that there were so many of them that were used to this.

"Other dimensions is what I've been told to use by some people."

"Too?" Well, it was kind of nice to know she wasn't alone in being sucked into things like this then. "Other dimensions is a decent way of putting it I suppose. Descriptive enough for what they are. I just wish I understood why they'd ever want someone like me."

"Perhaps you're important in some way. Or just interesting," Nida offered with a shrug. Nida himself didn't know why he was involved in all of this either, but he wasn't going to look the gift chocobo in the beak.

"Maybe you have something you can do that others can't."

"If I did, they'd come with more negatives than they're worth," she said with a hint of bitterness. Though now she was kind of curious about what he'd suggested. Maybe that was a reason why people were chosen.

"Is there something you can do that others can't?"

Well, he takes up a piece of the pizza and looks at her.

"I've got some rather unique magic I think. SO yeah, I guess I do have something I can do."

"Unique, hmm?" she tilted her head with a hint of curiosity in her voice. "My partner is a witch. What kind of magic do you do? She's an earth witch, mostly."

"I use something called paramagic. It means I effectively bond with powerful nature spirits and through them I can use magic, or just channel magic to enhance my body," Nida said. The last person he tried to explain it to that wasn't his husband had gotten... touchy. Other than Yuki, who had wanted it. Even if Nida hadn't explained it all.

And he left out the summoning, because that was his ace in the hole in a problematic area.

She listened intently to him explanation, clearly at least vaguely curious about what his magic was like. It sounded different than most of the magic in her own world that she was familiar with. The closest thing she could even think of to compare what he described to was human wizards making deals with demons to use magic. There wasn't a reason to assume it was anything as sinister as that though. Instead, she just kept a pretty even academic curiosity in her tone.

"Interesting. Do the spirits have wills and personalities of their own? Or is it more abstract than that?"

He'd gotten into fights over whether or not he was dealt with demons before. And it was tiring. The fights didn't help anyone.

"Oh, she definitely has a personality. If she wasn't sleeping right now, she'd be rather reactive to your presence."

"And you're okay with that?" she said with a slight incline of her head. Not many people would be so calm about having something in their head that talked to them. For her it was hard enough having to deal with what felt like something else controlling her.

"You must have a strong will."

Okay? Well, that's an interesting question to ask.

"Of course I am. She gives me power. How could I judge her for having her own personality then? She keeps me company too. Even if I get lectured, in fewer words, from time to time."

SIren had no control over him, but she could be good company.

"She doesn't have the ability to influence you in any way then?" That was interesting, if it was true. That she just offered power and talked to him now and then. She couldn't think of many things that offered power that didn't want control of some kind, at least not in her own world.

"She can speak to me, and enhance my senses, but not in the method you mean," Nida said with a shrug.

Why did people keep getting concerned over that? Though he was leaving out the 'consuming his memories'. Because people were weird about that.

"Out of curiosity, what does she get out of it?" She hoped the question wouldn't sound too blunt or rude. Mostly she was just genuinely curious about it.

"Sustained," Nida answered. He'd rather not explain how.

"I see," she said with a shrug. She was curious but it wasn't really her business and she understood when someone clearly didn't want to talk. "I won't ask anymore, but thanks for answering my questions. I apologize if they were too invasive or made you uncomfortable."

"People give me grief for her sometimes. They don't get the connection. They assume the worst."

"I know how that goes." She shrugged one shoulder. "People always assume the worst."

Sounds like she had some experience with that. But at least she wasn't judging him.

"'m sorry for anything you've gone through here."

"Don't be. I keep most of my secrets to myself for a reason." Mostly because she knew how people would react. Or at least strongly suspected it.

"I can understand all of that," Nida admires with a smile. "I've had issues like that too. Dresden definitely has had opinions about my magic."

And very serious ones.

"Harry?" She chuckled. "He has a lot of opinions in general. What does he think about your magic?"

Oh dear, she's met him. He wants to laugh.

"Oh he thinks I'm possibly possessed by a demon, the costs of it are too high, Siren might not be easily trusted, I could keep going. We came to an understanding to not worry about it too much."

"He likes to poke into things," she said with a shrug and a tone that betrayed a certain degree of amusement. "Often things he doesn't really get." It was something she was familiar with on her own and not something she entirely minded. Maybe that all came from the fact that he was almost exactly like her partner back home. Rachel did the same thing and made the same hypocritical types of choices that Harry did.

Seemed quite likely that Harry was like that. He definitely had pried deeper than Nida would have liked, and had held that because Nida's bond was wrong in his own magic system, Nida's bond had to be wrong for paramagic too.

"One of the things about places like this is that we have to learn that the lives we live are so very different, and that means needing to make allowance."

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