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tenminutesaday2023-03-06 01:07 pm
shivver) wrote in tenminutesaday2023-03-06 01:07 pm
Entry tags:
Fill: Challenge #172 (Orig)
Another spur-of-the-moment fill, this time because I don't feel like working in general. :) This needs a bit of explanation, though.
In my origfic, one of the rules of thumb of the magic system is that using magic to directly affect someone else's mind is Bad Idea(tm), because anyone, even non-magic-users, resists direct mind manipulation and the effect is that it hurts your mind - intelligence or even sanity. Even something as simple as influencing the choice of ice cream flavor is harmful.
I don't know if I really plan to use "thaumaturge" to describe the type of magic user that Kit is, but it might be a good choice.
Isaac dealt two cards from the deck, placing an eight of clubs to Kit's right and a queen of diamonds to her left. He placed the rest of cards off to the side, then picked up the pound coin and held it up between them. "All right. Now, I'm going to reach over and drop this on the eight. I want you to make me drop it on the queen instead."
Kit studied his face, shaking her head slightly. "I don't know any spells that can make you do that."
He smirked. "You don't know many spells at all. Only one, if I'm right."
"Yeah. Well, two, if you count me summoning Alex."
"Which you read out of a book and have no idea how to repeat." He grinned at her. "I thought so. Just one. Telekinesis."
"Right."
"But you're a thaumaturge. If you don't know the spell you need, you can craft your own. So, if telekinesis isn't what you need, then -"
"Craft my own." Kit closed her eyes, trying to tap that elusive power within her to find the right combination of magical language and willpower to make her brother change his mind. She had some ideas but she'd never tested them before and couldn't even guess if they would work.
"All right," she murmured, opening her eyes after a minute of massaging the motes of magic in her mind into place, "I think I can do it. But I have a question."
Isaac had sat back, idly twiddling the coin through his fingers, and he nodded at her to proceed.
"You said I shouldn't work mind magic, that I'd lose the plot if I did, and you might, too."
"I did."
"Then, why are you making me do that?"
He smiled. "I'm not."
"You told me to change your mind."
"I said no such thing." He sat up and tapped the queen. "I told you to make me drop it here."
"That's the same thing!"
"No, it's not!" He slammed the coin on the table and held up his hand in front of his sister's face. "This is a part of me, but it makes no decisions on its own. You can move this without my permission." He grabbed her hand and pulled it toward him. "Did I change your mind about where you want your arm to be? Or did I just move your arm?"
Kit's jaw dropped. "You want me to move the hand."
"Yes. You need to learn to search beyond the most obvious solution, especially if it's inherently dangerous." He gently placed Kit's arm back in front of her. "Cast your telekinesis to move the arm over and then spread the fingers. I will be resisting it, so you'll have to be firm." He picked up the coin. "Ready?"
"I think so."
"Okay. Cast the spell and I'll start moving toward the eight."
Kit concentrated and began to murmur the syllables, then faltered. "It's hard to direct my attention on your arm. I'm still thinking about changing your mind."
"Yeah, Dad said it's like that, because you really can do anything if you wanted to." He tapped his wrist. "Ignore me. Focus here. Look right here and focus on the arm, or better yet, the bone. Think about moving the bone, not 'Isaac's hand'."
"Okay. Let me try again."
Kit concentrated on the bone under Isaac's skin and pronounced her spell. She felt his resistance as he tried to keep the coin on course for the eight and compensated with a stronger force pushing the bone toward the queen. Once it got there, she found the second step to be much harder, holding that bone there while she forced the index finger and thumb apart. The coin fell on the queen with a heavy thunk.
"Excellent!" Isaac grasped her shoulder. "Perfect, and no danger or damage to you."
She sighed. "That we can tell, anyway."
In my origfic, one of the rules of thumb of the magic system is that using magic to directly affect someone else's mind is Bad Idea(tm), because anyone, even non-magic-users, resists direct mind manipulation and the effect is that it hurts your mind - intelligence or even sanity. Even something as simple as influencing the choice of ice cream flavor is harmful.
I don't know if I really plan to use "thaumaturge" to describe the type of magic user that Kit is, but it might be a good choice.
Isaac dealt two cards from the deck, placing an eight of clubs to Kit's right and a queen of diamonds to her left. He placed the rest of cards off to the side, then picked up the pound coin and held it up between them. "All right. Now, I'm going to reach over and drop this on the eight. I want you to make me drop it on the queen instead."
Kit studied his face, shaking her head slightly. "I don't know any spells that can make you do that."
He smirked. "You don't know many spells at all. Only one, if I'm right."
"Yeah. Well, two, if you count me summoning Alex."
"Which you read out of a book and have no idea how to repeat." He grinned at her. "I thought so. Just one. Telekinesis."
"Right."
"But you're a thaumaturge. If you don't know the spell you need, you can craft your own. So, if telekinesis isn't what you need, then -"
"Craft my own." Kit closed her eyes, trying to tap that elusive power within her to find the right combination of magical language and willpower to make her brother change his mind. She had some ideas but she'd never tested them before and couldn't even guess if they would work.
"All right," she murmured, opening her eyes after a minute of massaging the motes of magic in her mind into place, "I think I can do it. But I have a question."
Isaac had sat back, idly twiddling the coin through his fingers, and he nodded at her to proceed.
"You said I shouldn't work mind magic, that I'd lose the plot if I did, and you might, too."
"I did."
"Then, why are you making me do that?"
He smiled. "I'm not."
"You told me to change your mind."
"I said no such thing." He sat up and tapped the queen. "I told you to make me drop it here."
"That's the same thing!"
"No, it's not!" He slammed the coin on the table and held up his hand in front of his sister's face. "This is a part of me, but it makes no decisions on its own. You can move this without my permission." He grabbed her hand and pulled it toward him. "Did I change your mind about where you want your arm to be? Or did I just move your arm?"
Kit's jaw dropped. "You want me to move the hand."
"Yes. You need to learn to search beyond the most obvious solution, especially if it's inherently dangerous." He gently placed Kit's arm back in front of her. "Cast your telekinesis to move the arm over and then spread the fingers. I will be resisting it, so you'll have to be firm." He picked up the coin. "Ready?"
"I think so."
"Okay. Cast the spell and I'll start moving toward the eight."
Kit concentrated and began to murmur the syllables, then faltered. "It's hard to direct my attention on your arm. I'm still thinking about changing your mind."
"Yeah, Dad said it's like that, because you really can do anything if you wanted to." He tapped his wrist. "Ignore me. Focus here. Look right here and focus on the arm, or better yet, the bone. Think about moving the bone, not 'Isaac's hand'."
"Okay. Let me try again."
Kit concentrated on the bone under Isaac's skin and pronounced her spell. She felt his resistance as he tried to keep the coin on course for the eight and compensated with a stronger force pushing the bone toward the queen. Once it got there, she found the second step to be much harder, holding that bone there while she forced the index finger and thumb apart. The coin fell on the queen with a heavy thunk.
"Excellent!" Isaac grasped her shoulder. "Perfect, and no danger or damage to you."
She sighed. "That we can tell, anyway."
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