not_a_troll | IC Appointments [Luceti]

[Billy watches quietly and closely as Loki focuses, leaning in a little to watch for even the slightest sign of magic. He leans back when the fire emerges, eyes widening and a smile crossing his lips.]

Hey, you've got fire! That's awesome.

[Loki grins briefly before he lets the small flames fade again.]

Watch closely. There is more, yes?

[He moves to focus again, unconsciously grinding his teeth as he does so. It also takes at least five minutes before tiny sparks appear at his fingertips and another five minutes before they start dancing and flickering between his fingers and the palm of his hand.]

There.

[Wow, he really does have natural talent for magic. Billy is surprised again, the smile quick to return to his expression after the long wait.]

Lightning, too! How many of the elements have you learned already?

[They're slow to manifest - really slow - but everyone starts somewhere. He'd been like that once upon a time, too. That sort of skill comes with practice.]

Currently I am trying to combine both elements. As in a 'special attack', you see?

[The sparks disappear again and Loki lets out a long and rather relieved sigh.]

Only these two.

[He nods thoughtfully, leaning back and crossing his arms.]

Okay... good start, then. But before you start combining your powers, you should master each one on their own. That was what, five minutes to summon a little spell? That means that now that you know you can use the magic, you have to work on speed and scale.

[Loki sits back as well, looking at Billy for a long time.]

Are you sure about that? Hence the fact it takes me rather long to call forth these elements.

How do you wish to increase my speed?

[He cocks his head to the right a bit, frowning.]

Well, first you have to break down how you do the magic in the first place. Is it a spell? Chanting? Or concentration? The better you get at the method, the easier it'll be to do it each time.

Spells...

[Loki frowns again because he's not sure. Not sure at all.]

...I think.

You are more of a...chanting-person, yes?

You can't just think. You have to know. You have to believe. That's how I can do magic- it's not just chanting, it's willpower. Chanting is just my way of channeling that will.

[He lifts a hand between them, a few crackles of lightning appearing effortlessly around his fingertips without him speaking a single word.]

When you know you've got the power, and you know that you can do it, it gets easier the more you believe in yourself.

[Loki looks at Billy for a long time.]

Ah, even though I wish things were simple like that, they are not. I know how to summon beings through magical artifacts. It is not that it is entirely unbeknownst to me, you see? No, it is not like that.

After all, Loki should be able of doing such a thing, yes? Sorcery, wizardry? The black arts? Similar magical hobbies...

[He makes a bit of a frustrated gesture.]

I do what I think is right to do. Since Loki should know magic, I should practice magic as well. Because that is what Loki's should do. It is a right thing to do.

[Billy returns the look, brows furrowing.]

That's why you're learning magic? Because you're Loki, so you should?

[He shakes his head, leaning back in his seat and releasing the lightning.]

That's dumb. And it's not right, either.

[Loki looks at Billy while contemplating the response he got.]

It is dumb.

[He shrugs.]

Even though my interest in magicks and obtaining the knowledge that comes with it is most sincere. Hence all the books that I have lying around here.

[He gestures towards a large stack of books next to the couch.]

Most foolish indeed.

If you're interested in magic, then that's why you should do it. Don't say it's because you're Loki. You don't have to learn magic- magic isn't who you are. It's just part of you. Calling it anything else is just lying to yourself.

[He can't imagine doing anything just because of who he is. Learning magic because he's the son of the Scarlet Witch? Doing the right thing for the wrong reasons? It sounds terrible.]

Do you like magic?

[What was magic to him exactly? That one thing he could possibly do? Something he should be be able to do since his name is Loki? Could it be his only defense here? After all, the land of Luceti wasn't Asgard...

Maybe its safe to just keep himself undecided about this. So all he does is answer Billy's question.]

Aye. I like magic. And I need to get better at it.

That is a sufficient answer, yes?

[Well... he's not entirely satisfied - not with the should in there making him suspicious, but as long as Loki's enjoying it...]

...I guess it'll do. But I think that the sooner you find your passion for it, the better you'll get. People can excel at what they find fulfilling, not what they're obliged to do.

[Loki considers Billy's words and finally nods slowly.]

It is not an obligation. After all, if it would be like that, I am quite sure that I would not practice magic in the first place.

[He pats Billy's arm briefly.]

Now, shall we continue to enhance my skills of magic? Or do you want me to show you a spell Helios have taught me?

[That's a better answer. Billy nods more easily this time, relaxing in his spot and letting his curiosity override his concern.]

Actually, if you know another spell, I'd love to see it. We can work on some exercises after.

It is but a small spell. No sparks and all that jazz.

[Loki gets up and moves to pour some tea.]

The tea is important.

[Since he is still quite unable to feel warmth he curls both of his hands around the hot cup. For a moment he focuses on the tea for a really, really long time. After that he murmurs the words Helios has taught him and for a moment the tea gives off a red glow.]

I think the effect is not as great as it should be when Helios performs the spell, but if you drink this you will feel a wave of warmth going through you.

You wish to test it?

[...huh. He can't say he's ever drank glowing tea before. He eyes it dubiously for a moment, then picks up the cup to give it a closer look. ...Cool.]

I zapped my coffee once. Definitely didn't do this.

[He is nothing if not adventurous, though, and if the spell goes awry he can always magically nullify it himself - hopefully? Probably? - so he shrugs and takes a sip.

He's never been much of a tea-drinker, but with the gentle way that heat flows through his body - differently than a hot drink usually does - he thinks he can get on board with the magic drink idea.]

...Whoa.

[Loki smiles proudly. Even though it took him a lot of time to concentrate on the spell, he did make it work.]

It is good, isn't it? Of course the Malnosso did a rather good job on my inability to feel warmth, sometimes this helps.

It is a big step towards my future as a great sorcerer and the like.

[Ah, yeah... that does seem like it would be useful against his Death Penalty, which Billy tends to forget about once in a while. Hmm... he's also seeing a trend here.]

Well... you're on the right track, but don't stretch yourself too thin learning too many basics all at once. If it was me, I'd pick an element and specialize in it until I got my casting time down. Between your first spell and the tea, it seems like your best element is fire right now. That's the first one you're likely to master. Lightning...

[...Ehh. Ten minutes to cast a little spell isn't great, but it could be worse...?]

...Well, we'll work on it, too. What also helps is a focus, though- not just summoning a spell out of nowhere, but actually trying to summon it to do something. Do you have any candles?

[Allow Loki to be pleasantly surprised. Fire. Of course, the connection has been right in front of his nose. He smiles broadly, actually pleased with this.]

Yes, it needs to have a purpose. A certain connection to a request I conjure in my head. It is most obvious!

[He gets up and disappears into his bedroom. He returns with two candles.]

Behold. Candles. Am I correct to assume that you will request me to light them without using match sticks.

Right on the mark. Here, let me-

[He fishes his cell phone out of his pocket, poking around on the screen for a moment before looking up again.]

I'll time each one, and blow them out after they're lit. See if you can get faster the more you do. We'll go for, say... three times each candle? To start.

[He's curious to see how many spells Loki can do in succession, so this exercise is kind of multi-leveled.]

[Loki nods, grinning enthusiastically. The two candles he has with him are thick and perfectly able to stand on their own without toppling over.

But then Billy grabs a cell phone and...]

By Odin's empty eyesocket! Is that a phone of Stark? They have those here?

[Because if so, he wants one. And he wants to make pictures.]

Is it able to connect itself to the world of online? Will I be able to go to the you tube and watch movies there? And videos of music?

And I...

[Loki stops rambling and shakes his head. Candles first, then more inquiries about Billy's phone. He turns towards the candles again, and focuses on them, and flames from his hands.]

I am ready.

[Pffft. That earns a laugh; Loki, that was kind of beautiful.]

I had the same reaction when I got it. Tell you what, you light those candles, and when we're done I'll let you play around with it.

[Even if there is no internet - something that is sure to disappoint him just as much as it disappointed Billy himself. Still, it's a pretty cool phone anyway.

He lifts the phone, hand hovering over the start button.]

Ready... go!

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