meadowlarklogs

[Well... At least she wasn't his girlfriend. Siblings is a big deal, though, and Kyna shrinks a bit, struggling to process it. What does she even ask? Is there a point in asking anything?

The thing that's really gnawing at her, though, is also the thing that she's afraid to question him about. She bites her lip, scuffing her foot against the floor.]

How are we different?

[He's struggling to think of a way to reassure her and get this whole conversation back out of this painfully awkward territory, but then she asks him the question he knew was coming and yet hoped to somehow avoid.

It's also hard to answer, not just because he has to be careful about how he does so in regards to her feelings, but because most of the differences are subtle. Although he has an intuitive sense of them, putting them into words is going to be challenging, especially since he needs to pick those words carefully.]

You're um... I think you're more outwardly friendly and warm. Not that the Kyna I knew in Hadriel wasn't--she was really outgoing and caring--but it's different with you. When we first met here and I realized you didn't know me, I was prepared for the distance of being strangers and the possibility this you wouldn't even like me, but it was totally the opposite; you were so instantly kind.

[So much so that it had been really easy to fall into old patterns, and so much so that it's the first thing that comes to mind in response to her question.]

You're also more open to changing your mind and listening to advice. Again, not to say that the Kyna in Hadriel wasn't, but it took longer.

[The conversation he'd had with Kyna here about talking to people, and that she'd opened up even a little while doing so, had been unexpectedly quick. And with two complimentary comparisons, he knows she'll probably think he's being fake if he doesn't point out a negative one, so--]

I think she was a little more confident, maybe from more or different experience.

[That's not what she was expecting at all. She thought he'd have more negatives, truth be told, but maybe he's holding those back. Whether he is or not, just the way he's talking about her seems so genuine that she feels a sudden rush of affection, and she ducks her head a bit, embarrassed.

She was more confident back home, she thinks. Having her magic stripped from her has been so hard.]

This must be so weird for you.

[That isn't quite the reaction he expected; although her being a little embarrassed or flustered isn't a surprise, he'd thought she might have more immediate questions about details or might even call him out for the few negatives. The comment she makes is also unexpected, but after he considers it a moment maybe not as much so as he initially thought, since he'd just talked about her being more open with her concern for others.

He doesn't want to go much into an answer, since there's only so much he can say without having to touch on heavier subjects he doesn't want to discuss, so instead he offers a faint smile and an attempt to lighten the mood.]

It is weird, but at least some things are really familiar; the Kyna in Hadriel constantly made fun of me eating ramen too.

[A brief pause.]

Of course she was making fun of me because I kept eating it uncooked; you just seem to be against ramen on principle.

[Kyna laughs a little, weak and uncertain, but if he was hoping for her to latch onto that and make fun of him, this was the perfect strategy.]

You did what?

[Perfect, that had indeed been what he was hoping for, but it also indicates to him that she's not angry with him; at least not so much as to not go along with the teasing. That's reassuring, even though he knows there's still certainly unresolved emotion and questions.]

Hey, it was Hadriel; sometimes we didn't even have water to boil in the first place, and even when we did sometimes the time and energy it took just wasn't worth it.

Besides, the noodles are totally not as bad dry as you'd think. They're kind of like weird crackers.

[Oh, she is definitely going to bombard him with more questions, but for the moment, she's glad for the distraction.]

Lance, how many degrees do you have?

[He sighs, not exactly sure where this is going but sure it's nowhere good, and offers with a tone of long-suffering--]

Four.

[She reaches out to give his arm a little nudge.]

You stopped being allowed to eat shit like that after the first one.

[He shakes his head at that, carefully nudging her arm in return, unsure about any injuries she might've gotten during the event and wanting to be careful just in case.]

I was sixteen when I got the first one; I was still owed plenty of ramen eating years.

Edited 2020-08-12 02:09 (UTC)

The cut off is your first degree or like, 22.

[Either way, he's past it!

But then her smile fades a bit, back into something more guarded.]

Uh, hey... Did your Kyna use magic, too?

[Ugh rude it's hard to believe he's almost a decade too late by that standard. But if he still looks 22, does it really count?

And okay, serious time again, and it's another question he knew was coming. There's no avoiding it, so he tries to be as honest as possible without upsetting her unnecessarily.]

Yeah, she did. She um, taught me some too, but obviously I lost that when I got here.

[So although it's not at all to the level of how she feels, had can at least commiserate a little on how much losing it sucks. And of course he also knows much it hurt the Kyna in Hadriel when she lost her magic for awhile, which he presumes is similar to how Kyna here feels, only it's more permanent here.]

She what?

[Did he already have some magical ability, then?]

How?

Um, I'm not sure, exactly? She basically told me there was no reason I shouldn't be able to learn, and started off with some really basic stuff, and I just sort of picked it up over time.

[That actually gives him good opportunity to ask--]

Is there something called a 'focus' that you have to make, in your world? Or was that just in hers?

[She's squinting at him now, as though he's speaking another language.]

No. Where I'm from, you can only learn magic if you're born with the ability to use it. What's a focus?

[Well that's an interesting, major difference.]

It was something that was supposed to kind of store your magic, I think? Honestly I didn't know a whole lot about how exactly any of it worked, it was more like she'd explain to me things that were possible and I'd try to make them work until I got it.

[It was some very methodical, skillful learning Lance did, clearly.]

[Well that's... something.]

We don't have to "store" our magic in anything. It's just... all around us.

Weird. So you're not just from different worlds, there's some major differences in the worlds themselves.

[Which is fascinating, honestly.]

I guess so. We don't have elves where I'm from at all. What else do you think is different?

It's kind of hard to guess.

[He thinks about it another few moments, before guessing--]

Do you have a brother, and does he have a huge dog?

[Priorities here.]

[It's... weird. Weird that he knows, even though she knows why.]

Um. Yeah. Nico. And the dog's Lando.

Lando's awesome.

[And that said--]

Um, was the Kyna in Hadriel used evocation magic, mostly; is that the same?

[God, this is so weird.]

Uh... Yeah, sometimes. Wait, what does that mean to you? Evocation?

I feel like this question is a trap to make me sound even more like an idiot about magic than I already do.

[But that said--]

It was like... Conjuring energy or something? There was a lot of fire and electricity.

Sorry, I'm not trying to make you sound dumb. I'm just curious.

[Weird, though.]

I can control electricity, but evocation is like... calling forth a spirit. Usually to make it do something for you.

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