strangetrip | [For Carlos, Dorian, and Molly] Take chances, make mistakes, get messy

Entry tags:

[For Carlos, Dorian, and Molly] Take chances, make mistakes, get messy

Corbie really didn’t know what she thought about this.

She had been making a shift into more modern clothing over the period of months she’d been here, because really, it wasn’t like she had much of a choice. It was all that was on offer, and the gray dress she’d come through in could only be worn so often. The undergarments were the hardest part, really, because they were right next to her skin, and that took a long time to get used to.

This? Was a leap of a different kind.

She stared at herself in the mirror in a pair of jeans, trying to reconcile the sight with the sensation. She’d never worn pants before, and it felt… different. Not as bad as she’d though, but different. Her legs were still covered, so maybe Gran wouldn’t disown her. She’d have to hem them, they were a little long on her legs, but today rolling them would do. She’d already done this. If she took them off and saved them for “later,” it might be weeks before she was brave enough to try again. Best get it over with now.

Best get it over with now.

While she was at it, she may as well get some other things done. After all, worst that could happen was she’d be right where she started at the end of the day. And if she was awkwardly dealing with people, she wouldn’t be thinking about the fabric tubes on her legs.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Molly waved her greeting and walked over toward Corbie. "Hi, I was just out being a pain in the ass to the Inn." She grinned, "I throw magic at the barrier or edges or whatever people call it every day. One day, I'll find the weakness or make it." Either was okay with Molly.

It really never even would have crossed Corbie's mind that a lone wizard could bust them out of here, but the impossibility that she found easier to wrap her head around was, "You go out that far alone?" Her eyes were huge.

"Sure." Molly said easily, not sure why that would have caused Corbie's eyes to widen. "I used to take the trips with Harry, but with him gone." She shrugged, "but there's nothing out there that I can't....." Molly trailed off, "okay Scorpions. I hate Scorpions, but other than that, there's nothing out there that I can't handle."

She wasn't a fan of cactus either. Too many times she'd had to pick the spines out of her leg of side of her hand when she brushed by, but it was a hell of a lot better than some of the areas of Chicago.

While Corbie wasn't spoiled or anything, she was definitely a city girl through and through and really she had no understanding of how to orient herself once out of sight of in the inn. So she'd never been out to the barrier. You could go a long way in four hours.

And when she saw Molly falter around the mention of Harry--something she understood more than she wanted to--she smiled, lopsided and self-deprecating. "Getting lost?"

"You could, but the good thing about the barrier and the color of the hotel is one, you can certainly see the Inn from a distance and two, you can only go so far before you're forced to turn back around." Which was both a good thing and a bad thing when you were trying to find a weakness.

Corbie wasn't sure she believed that, but as it wasn't likely she was going to go find out ever, she let it be. "I wish I'd got to know Harry better," she admitted quietly. "He seemed nice."

"Oh he could be a pain in the ass." Molly assured her, but the deep affection for him was clear in her voice. "But he was the best teacher I ever had."

Well only teacher except for his godmother, but that was beside the point. He was a really good teacher.

Corbie snorted. "Sounds like my teacher. Well. Felix's more of a bitch, but Mildmay'd definitely call him a pain in the ass." She didn't realize until after she'd said it that that was the first time she'd thought of them without it hurting like fuck.

"Sounds like Harry and Felix would've got along." Molly laughed as she continued, "not at all. They sound like they're too much alike. But good teachers are worth the pain in the ass." At least Harry was.

"He was still teaching me, probably will until forever, but it had become more of a friend relationship, than mentor student. My mind magic is a lot stronger and more refined than his, but his offensive magic is in a class I will never get to."

Molly's mind magic was innate and up to par with older, more masterful wizards. But Harry had taught her how to use her power and that was more important.

Felix could manage not to get along with anybody. It was practically a talent of his. That she'd managed to get past his defenses was a matter of timing and desperation; to this day she wasn't entirely sure what he'd seen in her that made him treat her better than he did his own brother half the time, but she accepted it.

"Felix and me hadn't gotten that far. I'm still pretty new." Her amusement faded into something that was almost regret. "Harry offered to help teach me, but I didn't understand why he already knew I had magic. By the time I was ready to stop avoiding him, he was gone."

The words were spoken almost before she thought them. "If you want, I can help." It wasn't to finish what Harry started, it was passing the torch. Harry had taught her and now she could teach ... well maybe not teach, but she could mentor someone along. "I can help you with your mind magic. I'm still learning offensive magic. Or we can learn together."

"Yes!" Corbie started bouncing up and down like a much younger girl Maybe she wouldn't have to stagnate forever. Of course, if she ever got back it would be interesting to see how the things she learned here were accepted. That wasn't about to dim her excitement, though. "Please? Yes!"

That made Molly laugh. At that moment, Corbie reminded her of her little sister. "Sounds like a plan. The Inn doesn't have Ley lines to tap into but you really don't need that for the kind of magic I do." She pointed to her earrings and rings on her fingers. "These collect kinetic energy and can make spells more powerful."

Corbie stopped and stilled as she considered this information. "I dunno what ley lines are," she admitted. "Or kinetic energy." And her own ears had never been pierced. Given she never expected to be able to afford jewelry, there wasn't much reason.

"Think of them as rivers of magic that run below the surface. We don't physically touch them but we can reach out with our magic and tap into them. Same with kinetic energy."

Molly tapped into the energy in her metal rings and pulled an illusion of a young thunderbird sitting on her shoulder. It was the size of a bald eagle. "This would be a lot harder without kinetic energy."

The white bird shook its head and ruffled the tuft of feathers on the top.

Corbie jumped back, her eyes going as big as saucers. "Holy shit."

Molly reached up to stroke the back of her knuckle along the bird's chest and its feathers moved as they naturally would have if the bird had been real. "I can make her fly, too."

With that, the Thunderbird took off and did a slow circle around where they were standing. "Sorry, I didn't mean to freak you out. It comes in handy. It can be used as a distraction, but it can also cause injury. Not real issues, but the mind thinks that a talon is cutting into their skin, then their mind sees it.

Once she got over the initial shock, the whole thing was pretty damn neat. Corbie watched the bird, trying to wrap her head around the idea that it wasn't actually there. "Whoa... So, are you casting anything on me to make that work?"

"Yes and no." Molly said with a laugh. "How's that for a vague answer? It's a spell, it allows me to touch your mind so that you see it. I'm not really in your mind, but like a fingertip to your temple."

"... It don't hurt anybody, does it?" Corbie's first and swiftest lesson in mind-related magic had been Felix telling the story of how he'd shattered Isaac Garamond. And while she'd forgiven him for it, it still frightened her to think that she had that kind of potential as well. Not to mention being taught by a Cabaline, the idea of touching someone directly with her magic wasn't easy.

She thought of her friend, Rosie and how she'd unintentionally hurt her. "It can." Molly was honest. "Especially if you don't know what you're doing." Or if you mean to hurt them, but Molly left that out.

"But it's not that kind of magic to make illusions."

There was something more there, Corbie was sure. But that wasn't a point to push right now. "Okay then."

Molly let the Thuderbird fade away in mid-circle with a smile to Corbie. "Whenever you want to start, come find me."

Corbie smiled back. "I'll bug you in the morning."

"Looking forward to it." Molly was definitely looking forward to it. She liked the idea of passing the torch like Harry had done with her.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[For Carlos, Dorian, and Molly] Take chances, make mistakes, get messy

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly

Re: For Molly