aterat | Open September Logs

Entry tags:

Open September Logs

Who; Waver & Anyone
What; 2 Open Logs
Where; Market & Fountain (memory)
When; Late September I guess
Warnings; For the fountain memory: Severe Injury & allusions to possible death

A. Market – OTA

Several people had been on his case (justifiably even if he wouldn’t admit it) to get out more. Not that last month had made it that easy to acquiesce to that suggestion… Waver had exerted himself a little too much over everything. Between the damned beast and the other situations, he’d gotten involved with (even if he’d been warned not to). His overused circuits ached, and the rest of his body had done what it did every time a case got a little too out of hand and he’d pushed himself until it was over. It stopped him by way of getting sick and he’d had to hide away while he tried to recover from it.

So there was at least a reason for returning to the hermit life.

At least until that day, as he opened his fridge and realized with disappointment that he was once again out of bread and other assorted sandwich making ingredients… Not to mention he needed to pick up some things for the workshop before he went there later to check in on the state of his current subject of interest. The mystery seed that definitely did not appear to be normal by any stretch. He’d been cautious, studied it a bit, then set up a carefully controlled environment to contain it and see how it grew. Giving Waver items of a magical nature was like giving a kid a toy at Christmas. He was going to be curious, and he was going to study the hell out of it.

So, between the need for easy to make food stuff and materials for his workshop, he found him in the open air market. Strolling between stalls with a bag over his shoulder to carry what he needed. The mage mumbled to himself as he ticked off each item on his mental list, “Tomatoes… Lettuce… Eggs… Bread. Right, I need bread.” He sighed, turning to move away from his current path and on towards the bakery. “Maybe I’ll stop at the tavern for lunch-” Waver started to muse to himself as he noted the time of day, only to stop with a startled sound as he almost walked right into someone, the bag on his shoulder slipping off when he started to drop to the ground with an audible sound of something breaking (RIP eggs). "What the- You startled me!"

Obviously...

Smooth, Velvet.

B. Fountain Memory – OTA

Waver sat on the edge of the fountain later that day as he fussed with his lighter that was being difficult, despite him being certain he just filled the damn thing. It was just meant to be a short pause to light his cigar before starting the walk to his workshop. He planned to check on the mystery planting project he’d set up in a small, controlled environment placed next to a window, maybe nap on the sofa and hope that nothing exploded for a few days.

Idly the mage glanced at the fountain as he seriously considered giving up on the lighter and conjuring a little flame to be done with it, but that was a waste of mana in his opinion when a lighter should be doing the job just fine. The little gold object slipped free of his grip though and clinked audibly on the ground as something caught his eye in the reflection of the still waters…

And when the memory played to the end, a muttered curse left his mouth and his shoulders shook lightly in annoyance. “Shit.” He did not, in fact, need the bloody reminder of what happened just before he suddenly found himself in this stupid city over a year ago now… Especially when he’d had to practice the art of dodging the obvious around people who were starting to notice his avoidance of certain subjects and questions.

It was then that he noticed he wasn’t alone, feeling a presence standing near enough that the fountain had probably been in full view. His head swivelled and his gaze was sharp as he glanced at them uncomfortably. “Can I help you with something or are you just going to stand there gawking?”

Oof... Have fun with that.

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Good news, Nida wasn't the one almost walked into, so this wasn't his fault. Bad news, he actually felt bad about the guy. The guard pulled away from the stall owner he was talking to and moved to meet the mage.

"Hey there. Do you need some help?"

If nothing else, with his water magic he would be able to wash the egg gunk off of things.

Yin knows that voice. As she's been at the fountain for a while, it doesn't show anything for her, at the moment, though her vision might repeat, later. For now, one hand in the fountain, her specter turns to look right at Waver, in a way Yin herself can't seem to. It definitely meet's Waver's eyes.

When it looks right at him, Yin's eyes finally meet his. This is what Waver looks like. She associates the voice to his appearance.

But right, he seems agitated and asked a question, Yin intends to answer as best as she can.

Yin tilts her head and softly says, slowly, "I was putting your appearance to memory."

She looks down where the memory had played out. Yin is also still processing that.

Edited 2023-09-26 18:14 (UTC)

Waver was counting to ten in his head as the person who he’d nearly collided with took their leave rather quickly. What was with his luck sometimes? he mused as he crouched to retrieve his bag. He didn’t expect anyone to help, either, let alone someone who hadn’t been involved in the near collision in the first place. So he was a little surprised when Nida approached.

Hm… One of the city guards? A little outside their realm of duties, he thought. But the mage shrugged tiredly at the question. “Don’t suppose you know how to put an egg back together.” He commented wryly, nose wrinkling as he pulled his tomatoes out of the bag. They were definitely covered in egg yolk. Yuck…

It takes Waver a moment or two to process what he’s seeing. If only because his emotions tended to go from a calm zero to an irritated extreme of sixty in what seemed like no time at all when something threw him off. It usually resulted in some lingering embarrassment after the fact, especially when someone who didn’t deserve to deal with that had been in the line of fire (people who pushed his buttons on purpose less so). Yin definitely didn’t need the professor scowling at her for her first view; it wasn’t like she’d even done anything.

It was just… Very poor timing.

But that was how things usually went.

Taking a breath, his eyes fell on the spirit in the water and definitely realizing its gaze was meeting his eyes and the wheels ever turning in his head didn’t take long to put the pieces together. Yin’s ability that she’d partially displayed that night a while back. This was how she saw. She confirmed as much as she spoke. “Ah… Right. That makes sense.” He deflated slightly, reached down to scoop up the lighter he’d dropped. Hair curtaining his face to piece together a less awkward expression as he straightened. “Startled me, is all.”

He finally eyed the spirit again properly. “So this is what you used that night.” Waver was, obviously, going to use it as a distraction from the rest of this.

It seemed that Illyana had perfect timing for coming upon Waver when he probably least wanted to see her. The reasons she happened to be passing by the fountain at the exact moment it was playing his memory were pure coincidence. Or perhaps, if one wanted to be more cynical, it was the universe playing a trick on him. She'd been on the other side of the fountain when it started and she'd honestly gotten caught up in the memory, it was almost like watching a movie. A movie with an actor you were familiar with.

He really did lead a life that would almost fit right in with the X-Men.

Of course, once he'd finally noticed her (and she'd finally noticed him) she tilted her head and then gave a small smirk. "I think I'll just keep gawking for a bit." She really couldn't help herself. "At least there's less chance of everyone seeing it if it's playing in a movie fountain." Was that her vague attempt at trying to make him feel better? Maybe.

"Did you ever find out who she was?" Of course she was going to ask questions and not just pretend she hadn't seen anything.

"Sorry. Entropy is beyond even my magic to counter," Nida admits with a small shrug. "But..."

He reaches to Siren, shunting Carbuncle aside for now. The little protective spirit does get annoyed by this but Nida doesn't mind, because she's better with water. He curls the spell in his hands, creating and struggling to hold a simple orb of water between his hands.

"Here. Just... pass whatever's dirty through this and it should get them clean enough until you get home."

Given Waver’s penchant for complaining and cynicism, his opinion of what just happened weighed heavily upon the universe playing a particularly rude trick on him. Didn’t seem to matter which world he was in, if something could go wrong it would.

Her comment gets a rather unimpressed glare across the fountain, shoulders still shaking lightly as though he were a volcano just this close to erupting He should know her well enough by now to have expected the reply before he even opened his mouth, but Waver’s emotions always got the better of him, always went from a calm zero to an over the top 60 in so little time that it ensured a reaction before he could stop himself. “Do you really have that much bloody free time to waste?” Of course she did. Everyone did in a place like this.

It didn’t help that he felt awkward right now. His frown stretched impressively across his face, turning his eyes to glower down at the waters below that had begun to ripple and dissipate any lingering images when he activated his circuits to stir up a small breeze. If he had more power, he wistfully noted, he could have caused a gale that might deter further conversation… “I’d rather this world not take it upon itself to share personal shit in general.”

It was at least a small comfort that it wasn’t a public phone network message this time. But a fat lot of good the change did when one of the people he didn’t want to see it most happened to be present in the first place. He’d lied to her at least once, maybe twice, in the last month alone about this, considering he’d told her his ‘plans’ had kept him alive this long when it came to dealing with trouble. Now it was fairly obvious that might not be the case.

“Considering I’ve been here since then? No… I’ve only got an unconfirmed theory at best.” He offered back, finally stooping to scoop up the lighter he’d dropped. The topic of the woman in the chariot was at least an easier topic to focus on, one that he’d gladly take over the ‘elephant in the room.’

“Some things can’t be helped, even by magic.” He mused wryly, studying the mess inside his bag for a moment.

Waver felt a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and the small usual burst of envy at the sight of the spell Nida conjured up. It’s nothing against Nida. The mage just always found himself acutely aware of what he lacked when faced with someone else’s abilities. Conjuring up a similar spell and maintaining it like Nida was would have taken far more focus and drained him more than most mages.

He pushed the thought aside though, complaining got him nowhere, and it saved him from washing everything off in the sink back at the apartment. “Ah... Thank you, that would help.” He handed the tomatoes over, and pulled out a head of lettuce next, waiting for Nida to finish with the tomatoes before offering it.

Absently, he was glad he didn’t get the bread already.

That was exceedingly true. But for now Nida was doing his best, maintaining his focus on holding the water in place so that Waver can wash things.

"Siren likes it when I practice with water lately," Nida says honestly. It helped strengthen his bond with her, which made her slightly less angry with Carbuncle.

Slightly.

The mage considered what to do as the tomatoes were rinsed off, no point in putting them back in the goopy egg mess in the bag. So he unfolded his scarf from his neck and set it down in a free space to rest the produce on once it was clean. He could figure out what to do after that.

Moving on to the lettuce, he glanced at Nida again. “Siren?” He asked both conversationally and curiously, since they were occupied for the moment.

"Magic where I'm from is a matter of bonding to powerful spirits called Guardian Forces. And using magics they are aligned with makes your bond to them more powerful."

And since he was already water and wind aligned it was easy to connect to her. Carbuncle didn't approve of it of course, he was a defensive spirit.

At least the poor timing doesn't throw Yin off. She's used to this sort of reaction. It reminds her, heavily, of Hei. Of home. It feels familiar and solidifies her interest in Waver. She connects his mood to the scene that played out not that long ago. Something about it either agitates him, or is a thing he wishes to not touch. For now, she just notes that.

The spirit wobbles a little up and down still curiously peering at Waver as his hair falls to hide his face.

"Yes," she informs Waver honestly.

"I was exploring the city."

That gets a curious rise in his brow. It was always interesting to hear how magic worked in other worlds. There were sometimes similarities, but they were never quite the same. Forgive him, Nida, if he has questions. “I see, so when you refer to Siren, you were referring to that particular spirit.” Finishing the head of lettuce, he pulled out the last few things, mostly fruit for snacks.

“Some mages where I’m from do call upon elemental spirits for their familiars… And then there are those versed in forms of spiritual possession.” He mused, before continuing. “So, using the kind of elements she’s associated with strengthens the bond between you. I take it that she has certain abilities and talents beyond the norm that assists you?”

It is a safe bet to presume the answer is ‘both’ on the subject of him being agitated or not wanting to touch the subject. The opening to focus instead on Yin and her little spirit was an easy one for the mage to latch onto, both because it was interesting and because it took the focus off himself for now.

When he straightened, he had managed a slightly more neutral expression, even if there was some awkwardness lingering around the eyes and in his tone as he focused on the small spirit wobbling in the water. A brow raised slightly as he almost got the impression that it was curious, but perhaps that was some curiosity from Yin herself, given this was her first time seeing him. “Interesting. Something so small would blend in rather easily. Some might not even notice it at all if they weren’t paying attention to the water.” Which it kind of had before he realized Yin was even there. Leaning slightly, he got a better look at it. “Is it more of a construct that you connect your senses to, or does it have any sentience of its own?”

Glancing up again, he offered a small nod. “It’s good to familiarize yourself with it, though I’ve heard the layout changes at times. What do you make of it so far?” That was to say, he wondered in his own way if she was settling in okay.

"Yes," he agrees with a nod. "A spirit of the winds and seas, and of music. And using her elements brings us closer, just as using fire would bind me more to Ifrit, or ice to Shiva."

As for the talents... He smiles. Yes, one could say that.

"She enhances my hearing, among granting me magic at all. It's a form symbiosis."

“Fascinating.” He responds, and it’s an honest response. He does find this all terribly interesting. The number of different kinds of magics out there beyond his own world is interesting to hear about. Then odd comparisons to be made to some things that are common where he’s from, to the slight differences and variations, often lead him to interesting theories and ideas as he learned more. “I suppose I should thank both of you then for the water spell.” He added absentmindedly.

Finishing the fruits, he turned the bag inside out, grimacing at the smashed carton of eggs. That wasn’t salvageable, so he’d find a rubbish bin to drop the mess into. But he does take a quick moment to rinse the inside of the bag to put things back inside. “Is there something that she gets in return other than a host to carry her and bond with?”

"I don't consider this wasting my time. In fact," she sat down dramatically on the edge of the fountain and folded one leg over the other. "I like to think of this as my job, so it's really not free time." It wasn't like she'd ever actually picked up something like a job here. If anyone ever asked how she got money, well, she'd have an explanation for that but it might not be the one someone would want. It paid to be able to use magic like she could. And to have imps.

But, basically, her job was teasing the people around her, mostly him (he should feel special).

"Who wouldn't rather that? But we don't get to choose it," she said with an overly nonchalant shrug. She'd be just as annoyed in his position, but luckily she wasn't in his position at the moment. Which meant she could act as indifferent as she wanted to about it.

"What's the theory?"

Waver’s frown deepened as she sat down and clearly settled in for a proper chat. Was his blood pressure rising slightly as she responded? Yes. But if anything, her teasing helped ease some of the awkwardness. Sure, it was replaced by obvious annoyance at her antics but that was still somewhat better…? Maybe…?

“Your job-“ He rolled his eyes with a grumble and fussed with trying to get the lighter working again. “Then you clearly need a vacation.” He ended in a slightly deadpan tone, because she clearly spent too much time working (teasing).

That was part of why this was all so annoying, honestly. They didn’t get a choice on the whole ‘their lives being shown like a stupid movie for other people’s entertainment.’ They didn’t even get to have a say in what was shown! Couldn’t it at least be something stupidly insignificant that would be easier to talk about? Finally, he gave up the lighter, barely keeping himself from chucking it across the courtyard and sticking it in a pocket instead. He brought a hand up to conjure a small spark of flame to light the end, because Waver didn’t think he’d get through this conversation without a smoke.

“Does it matter what the theory is if I can’t confirm it?” The professor responded with a tired shrug, blowing out a cloud of smoke in the opposite direction of them. Of course it mattered, at least enough that he spent as much time thinking about the encounter as he did.

Still, better this than other things, perhaps. “A body double for the king. His shadow… Their physical appearance fits some of the legends describing what he looked like. Small frame, dark black hair, heterochromia with one eye embracing the blue of the sky and the other the shadows of the night… I think she may be a residual image; a magical body double meant to protect him and confuse potential threats by being such a contrast to his actual appearance. But without confronting her again, I can’t say for sure…” Nor could he be satisfied with the theory without confirming it or a few other lingering details.

Edited 2023-10-08 16:41 (UTC)

"And the fountain of course," Nida says, because that helps with the water spells as well. A natural source of it of course.

"GFs are sustained with memories. So she gets to live by consuming things I don't need."

Waver finished with cleaning the egg gunk out of the bag and let out a sigh as he wrung the water out of it and turned it the right way out again. “Thank you for that.” He added politely, before carefully putting the produce back inside and draping his scarf over his shoulders again.

Slipping the bag on his shoulder, he grabbed the remains of the carton to throw out. Though he raised a slight brow at the explanation. “I see, so it’s a trade for the enhancement and magic in return for your memories… And you don’t find that difficult at times?” He voiced, curious if the memories were only things Nida didn’t need or if they could cause him some problems.

There was no judgement in his tone, either. This kind of cost, or sacrifice, was not unheard of among mages in his world either. A few memories in payment for a beneficial relationship with a spirit would be a fair price…

Yin isn't the type to consider pursuing a closed door, but perhaps at some point they should return to that vision. Her curiosity bubbles. They are small bubbles, but they are there. For now, she is content to entertain Waver's questions.

Unbeknownst to her, the future of her specter is to gain its own sentience, but for now, at least, the answer is, "Construct," as it is the closest to what it is. She isn't entirely sure how they work, but they connect to the Dolls that create them, and hers is definitely connected to her.

Yin's eyes open, slightly, and she tilts her head. "How does it change?" Most cities don't do that, she hopes. Even when their changed back home, it was just the sky, other than the Hellgates.

As for her thoughts of the place, Yin isn't entirely sure. She is still understanding that side of her. One thing she does know, as she's not on missions, "It seems more still than home."

With her tone so vacant, it might be hard to tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing. To Yin, it's just a fact.

Once the cleaning was done Nida pulls his hands apart and the surface tension on the water broke. It feel in a loud splash from his hands. Which was a relief actually. The whole thing had been a headache to maintain.

"It can be difficult, yes," he admits, "but it was something I was raised to accept as an exchange. Guess even once we knew what the cost was it didn't seem so lofty to me. I was a soldier, more or less. There are always memories i could live without."

Most of them highly traumatic.

Waver nods, a construct then… Still was odd to watch it, getting the sense of some kind of emotion from a small water being… but for now he would chalk it up to his own mind imposing the sense of emotion to a small being and perhaps some of Yin’s own curiosity and personality bleeding through.

He was going to ask another question, but Yin’s gets priority given she was new and the whole matter could be… jarring. And given Yin was only just familiarizing herself with this place, it was important to note.

“Sometimes everyone will wake up and there will be some area that wasn’t there the day before, or a building suddenly existed where before there were other things.” He frowned a little, shaking his head. “People, the locals that is, act as though the location was always here.” The mage had thoughts about that, but not enough evidence to say for sure. “The academy I’ve been helping around, that’s one of them.” He fussed with the lighter a bit, finally getting a flame out of it enough to light his cigar. “And it’s an interesting case, compared to some of the other locations. We have confirmation that it existed in a space outside of this one after the cataclysmic event that apparently caused all this. It and some other things, I expect… But it apparently did belong here all along.” So it was at least another piece of the puzzle.

Yin’s opinion of what she thought so far gets a small hum. Sometimes the place was very still… people could almost get used to it. Waver just had the misfortune of walking from one weird situation to another since he got here, not unlike in his world. “Used to more excitement where you’re from, are you?”

Waver supposed he could understand that on a few levels. Even if he wasn’t the sort to be open to letting things go… There were plenty of things he might function better without when it came to memories.

But it’s not an unfamiliar way of accepting or pursuing things. “I can understand that. Mages in my world are often raised to study and follow their family’s chosen paths. Often times things most be given up for the sake of improvement. I have had many students whose personal magecraft has costs.” Not that Waver thought all of them were right, or that he didn’t wish they had more choice or chance at a proper childhood sometimes… But he gave them a safe environment to grow and learn at school, and the odd time he heard them admit that it was hard to deny he felt better about what he was doing with his life.

"What if the family's chosen path doesn't fit your own interests and aptitudes? Sounds silly to me," Nida said with a roll of his eyes. One can't always fit the mold set by the previous generation. In fact, they rarely could.

"Children need a chance to grow on their own I think."

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Open September Logs

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B. Fountain Memory

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