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

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[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.

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Avoiding direct eye contact was a self preservation tactic. Soul gazes were not fun, especially when you were completely unprepared for them. He knew that it threw people when he didn't make full eye contact.

"Hey Corbie," he called out when he saw her enter the kitchen. He wasn't busy, just trying to work out what the hell he could make with the latest batch of ingredients.

Corbie hated being a bother when anybody was busy, and that probably decided her words more than anything else. Besides, she wasn't any good at herding people around the bush until they gracefully dovetailed into what she wanted. Felix could do that like a fucking champ, but she couldn't. She just ended up babbling like an idiot. "You're a wizard, aren't you?"

Carlos wasn't all that busy, but he always appreciated people getting down to business quickly. Her question had him raising his eyebrows for a moment, then leaning against the counter looked at her. "Yeah, I am. Is that a problem?"

"No." Corbie lifted her chin just a fraction, a hint of stubbornness coming out under the humor. "Unless you don't wanna tell me how I saw you disappear, then I'd be real sad."

Carlos frowned as he thought back to when he'd disappeared in public lately, then he had it. "The snow day?" He'd dropped out of sight to avoid snowballs, and to sneak up on Buffy. "I used what we call veils - hiding people, care, buildings..."

Corbie's eyes went huge and she rose just a fraction on the balls of her feet. Not unlike the perking of an excited puppy. "You could hide a whole building?"

He tried not to laugh, really. It was just difficult when faced with such enthusiasm. It just came out as a smile. "If you have to, yeah. Magic isn't exactly well known in my world. It's useful to be able to have gatherings in peace."

Now Corbie actually bounced, just once. "Could you teach me to do that? I mean, not a building or anything that big obviously but I'd love to learn veils."

Oh, her enthusiasm was so cute. "I don't know. Magic might work differently in your world compared to mine. How does it work with you?"

"It might," Corbie agreed, unconsciously bunching up her fists as if literally trying to hold herself together. "But my magic ain't like Regina's either, and we've been finding a way. And it's getting easier!"

He was silent for a long moment, thinking about the possibilities of how magic worked, and why it potentially worked differently here. That may be something that was worth exploring at a future date. "Then we could give it a go - if you'll tell me how your magic works, and you can teach me something from your world."

"Metaphors." Corbie said at once. She lowered herself down until she was flat on her feet and loosened her hands. "Felix taught me that magic is metaphors."

She held out her palm and summoned a witchlight. Hers were shaped like chrysanthemums like Felix, but purple while his had been green. But this one was bigger and dimmer than her usual lights. "This is called witchlight. It's one of the first things I learned to do, after I learned how to light and extinguish a candle. This is that same basic idea, only I'm the candle and the flame at once.

"I don't have to use this metaphor, though. Some wizards think of their lights as mirrors reflecting sunlight, or lanterns..." And then the one light became three, smaller and much brighter. Corbie's face softened. Good girl. "Or stars."

Basic lights. Well, that would seem to be universal across all forms of magic, which made sense to Carlos. After all, it was useful, especially if you were a scared child just discovering that you had access to magic.

"That makes sense. Lighting candles is pretty much the first thing we do as trainee wizards," he agreed. But the way she described magic... then it would probably work. Our magic is led by emotions, but it uses energy to function." Of course, emotions meant it was so easy to understand why people went bad. Negative emotions were so easy to fall back on.

Corbie nodded. "Regina's been teaching me that. It was hard... but I'm starting to think that the ideas ain't incompatible."

He nodded slowly. "Makes sense I suppose. Unless there is a radical different approach to magic in a world, it would seem that there are a lot of basics that are the same, or it wouldn't work here."

Corbie tried not to start bouncing again. "Pleeeeease?"

He tried to give her a stern look, but knew it would never last, so he just shook his head and smiled a little. "We can try on condition that you try to teach me something from your world." He might as well learn something out of it.

"I've got books with me?" Corbie offered, honestly not sure what magic she could teach him just yet. That was something she'd have to think about.

"How about we set aside a time for it," Carlos pointed out with a grin. Her enthusiasm was great, but he guessed it would be best to set out a structured time to deal with it. "Then we can practise properly."

Corbie pulled a face. "I didn't mean right now." But she settled herself again and asked, "When works for you?"

Carlos just laughed a little at her response. With her enthusiasm, he didn't want to assume anything. "Mornings work best, before people start demanding food, if that's okay with you?"

Corbie perked up again almost at once. "I can do that."

"How about next week?" It would give him time to work out the best way to teach veils to someone.

The girl nodded vigorously. It would give her time also to figure out if there was anything she could teach him in turn. "Works for me."

"Work out a time, let me know," Carlos said. "And I'll see you then."

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

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