driftfleet | Libuscha IV System Mingle (no. 1)

[Belthazar passes his fingertips over the sides to make sure they're perfect. He finds that gravity helps a lot in this respect, so it takes some rotating and more pulling of those arcane threads.

At last he nods and closes his hands around the pyramid, ending the spell. He checks it over one more time, then hands it over. It's warm and smooth in texture like a hearth stone if one forgives the pointy ends.]

I have a good feeling about this one.

[She takes the crystal in her hands, turning it over a few times, feeling out each side, first with her eyes open and then closed, searching for defects. While her eyes are open, they don't... glow, per se, nothing like his, but there's a silvery sheen to her irises that glitters as she activates her identification abilities, those honed carefully in the Arcanum twenty-odd years ago.

It's easy to fall back into old artificing habits: the design process, the debates, the physical development, the pure, delicious arcane exploration of it all. It's familiar in a way that many things about this place has been, though at least in this instance it's a pleasant way.

She taps one finger to a side and releases the crystal, and with her Levitate spell active, it floats in the air. She uses that same finger to flick it gently a couple of times, watching it rotate in the air, her keen eyes searching for signs of wobbling or off-kilter rotation.]

Looks pretty damn good, by my estimate.

[Belthazar watches her and her reaction carefully, like someone nervously presenting something to a mentor. When she gives her stamp of approval, he lets out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

With it comes the excitement and the realization that he's actually making headway on a project he's had for a few years now.]

If this works-- [His voice trembles at the edges.] -- if this works, it'll change my life. And I'll be one step closer to making something that can produce mana on its own.

[She glances sidelong at him, curious, and a little concerned at the wobble in his voice, the sudden gravity added to the situation by whatever realization just came upon him. She doesn't understand what he's talking about, but it's obvious that this is real important, in one way or another.

Hmm.

Lup releases the spell, catching the crystal deftly as it drops, but she doesn't hand it over just yet.]

Question for you, first. Your magic- is it affected by your emotional state?

[He trusts her enough that he doesn't get all worried when she doesn't hand it over right away. He's not crazy. A little mad in the head, but not completely batshit crazy.]

I-- [He feels reprimanded even though there wasn't a trace of that in her voice at all. His ears flatten against his hair, a tell if there ever was one.] -- yes.

[The lack of argument is reassuring, so she smiles, setting the completed crystal down on the table, apart from the rest so it's distinct, not to be mixed up by mistake.]

Thought so. Natural arcana's twitchy like that sometimes. Take five, my dude! Walk around for a minute, shake off your jitters, find some zen. If it's as important as you say, then there's no sense in making it all go boom because you've got stage fright.

[Her tone is casually matter-of-fact, not meant to be judgmental. He seems to know what he's doing well enough, but over-eagerness can be as much a flaw in the design as sides or symmetry.]

[That's... actually pretty sound advice. He drags his hands down his face.]

Okay. Okay. Yes, you're right. I should... [probably do something about this impending anxiety] ... take a small break. I'll drink some water, maybe have something light. I don't remember the last time I ate.

[He kneels down beside his satchel, which is half-hidden underneath the table. He removes a canteen and a meticulously-wrapped bundle, checks it, and then glances over his shoulder.]

Are you hungry at all? I have some cookies and bread with cheese. It's very basic, but it keeps well out here.

[Hey, there we go. Her smile shifts to a grin and she folds her legs beneath her, sitting cross-legged beside him.]

Sure, I can always eat! Hit me up.

[Basic isn't usually her jive when it comes to food - or most anything, truthfully - but any port in the storm. She can always make it tastier if it doesn't suit her as she likes it.]

[Belth finds a metal cup from somewhere and fills it with water, then passes it to her. He takes the other one for himself. One never knows when they'll find a friend out in the wilderness who's in need of some kindness. Then he sets the package down on its waxy cloth to keep out the water, and unwraps it to reveal a small basket.

The bread is airy and soft, though a bit cold at this point, and a smaller wheel of cheese is tucked beside it. He splits the bread lengthwise with a small knife so that each of them get half, and then he unwraps the soft white cheese and the cookies. The cookies are less basic because Belthazar can't do anything halfway; they smell of brown sugar, butter, caramel, and a hint of peanut butter, because they're filled with the stuff.

Belthazar spreads some cheese onto his bread first. Cookies are for dessert and dessert comes last.]

I love conjuring food as much as anyone, but there are some things I'd rather just make myself.

[Lup wastes no time in diving in, trying out both cheeses to see how the flavours mix before adding both to her bread and folding it over. She hums her approval- the bread is soft and crisp, obviously baked with care, and everything smells great.]

Hey, no argument here. Even when conjuring food I like to just make the ingredients and piece it together into a proper meal. Cooking's awesome.

Cooking is very awesome, [he agrees, and rips off a piece of bread to shove into his mouth. Despite the cold it's really not all that bad. If he felt like warming it up, he would. He chases it with some nice mountain-cold water, already feeling a bit at ease just by taking a break from what he was doing.]

I used to work in the kitchens of the nobility. It was the best way to put food on my plate, assuming I didn't mess it up.

That sounds like it could be either super cushy or a huge asspain, depending on who the boss is.

[Nobles are fickle as hell- they could either be generous with their rewards or, more likely, selfish and reluctant to spend a single copper more than they're forced to. despite having more of it to go around than what they could spend in a single lifetime.]

Mostly the latter. I was either washing dishes, chopping vegetables, or acting as a busboy. But it taught me a lot about cooking and how high society worked, and it was how I got my foot in the door for an apprenticeship.

[He rips off another piece of bread.]

I'd rather be homeless than hungry.

[Her response is a musing smile while her mouth is full; sometimes there's no choice involved. Sometimes you just suck it up and deal with both, until you muster the skills to satisfy at least one of them.

Sounds like he's had a bit of a rough life, though, and she can sympathize with that.]

Apprenticeship for magic?

[He's glad she seems to understand. He'd hinted as much to Taako, at least.]

Right. All the raw talent in the world means nothing if you don't do anything with it. And for me, it was the only feasible way I could improve my situation.

[He takes another sip of water and adds with a trace of humor:]

And all the heavy lifting hard labor jobs were taken, of course.

[That makes her laugh, though it's not meant to be cruel.]

Yeah, don't think that one's your calling, my dude. [You're like five inches tall and 12 years old. And that's coming from her who's already on the smaller side.] But the rest is a familiar story- it's more or less how I got started, too.

[It gives him some small amount of satisfaction that he can make someone laugh. It was always Sokka and Eithan who said funny stuff before. He's... learning.]

You spent time on the streets, too? That's... not the best thing to have in common, but it can't be helped I guess.

Not like it's unusual. The world loves to shit on folks who weren't born with that proverbial silver spoon. But hey, don't most heroes hail from humble beginnings? It can be a cool thing in retrospect.

[Good to know he's got a sense of humour. He comes across as awfully serious, so she'd had a little concern that they'd clash. She knows she can be awfully blunt, often without apology.

She pops her last bit of cheese in her mouth and reaches for a cookie, catching a whiff of it as she chews.]

'izzis peanut butter?

[Blunt and to the point, but it's a familiar thing for Belthazar now. He surrounds himself with people who tell the truth, and his adoptive father can be crass at times.]

That's true. It's just that the standard should be higher for elvenkind. All the elves I've met are long-lived, no matter the world. Shouldn't they have a better view of the big picture? Shouldn't they have already developed the infrastructure to keep people from falling between the cracks?

Just because Silvermoon is full of corruption doesn't mean every elf civilization is the same way, and yet...

[And here he tips his hopelessly idealistic side, at least a fraction of it, while he finishes off his own bread.]

Mm-hmm. Peanut butter and caramel.

[She grins at that. It's a far less cynical view than she's used to debating with- more like something she'd have said to Taako rather than have it be said to her. It's not a wrong ideal to believe in, at least.]

Don't read too much into it. Elves have different clans and races the same way humans do, and we just happen to come from the more snobby and selfish parts of society. If I'd been born with the moon elves things might've been different- I'm sure it'd be the same for you, somewhere in your world.

[At least, she doesn't like the idea of writing off her whole species just because they hadn't felt like taking care of two orphaned brats. Their family had stepped in to an extent, even if neglect had factored in, and they'd taken care of each other just fine for the rest. They hadn't been left to die in an alley somewhere, and that counts for a lot.

At his confirmation of the contents of the cookie, she holds it in her palm and touches it with her free hand, carefully transmuting the ingredient as she'd done hundreds of times before. A quick gesture of Prestidigitation alters the flavour back to peanut butter, so at least it won't change the intended taste. Only then does she bite in.

...Ooh, that's a tasty mix.]

Probably. Though they're a bit archaic in their thinking, I imagine the night elves have fewer orphans in their own streets.

[Though they have fewer children regardless.

He watches her work with curiosity until he realizes the reason. There's only one reason someone would want to transmute peanut butter. Panic crosses his face.]

Oh no. Are you allergic? I'm so sorry, I didn't ask-- I can conjure something else to eat if it's severe!

[She waves him off as she pops the second half in her mouth and leans back in the snow. It's cold against her skin, but she doesn't mind so much. Not like she's technically alive, anyway.]

Nah, don't worry about it- I got it covered, and anyway, I won't die or nothing. Just makes my body cranky for a while. After this long I know how to avoid it.

Thank the Light. I've heard of bad peanut allergies that can make someone stop breathing if they're in the same room, but I've never actually dealt with it.

[He had a couple friends he'd make vegetarian food for, which is the extent of his special diet experience.]

I suppose something like that wouldn't stop any mage of skill though.

[She snorts.]

A lot of spells have a verbal component to them, so even the most skillful mage might run into trouble if they suddenly couldn't breathe!

That's very true. I think a mage's best treatment of that is to make sure it doesn't happen.

[He shoves a cookie entirely in his mouth. Just one bite. And then he washes it down with some water, chewing thoughtfully. These really aren't bad, but he might swap out the peanut butter for chocolate next time. A richer cookie...

He's almost forgotten about his little project, but not quite.]

... I do feel a little better, having taken some time. Maybe it was my blood sugar all along.

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