⇨ CAMPING GROUNDS

[ringleaders]

Who: Everybody!
When: Day 64
Where: The Camping Grounds
What: While the Ringmaster attempts to purge the carnival of magical tracing spells and deal with the angry fire fae in her belly, everyone else is getting sent on an emergency camping trip with some unusual local fauna.
Warnings: Camping.

CRYPTIC CAMPGROUNDS↴ You're given about three hours to prepare, after the Ringmaster tells you her plans for the coming week. There is a vast selection of camping equipment at your disposal, and the means to take along enough food for the length of the stay. The wilderness of the planet you're left on is nearly idyllic, but some people just don't like the great outdoors. ► CRYPTOZOOLOGY: As it turns out, the carnival won't be alone here. There is a varied ecosystem of cryptids to be found as well, living in relative peace and mostly reacting to the newcomers with curiousity. More details can be found on the plotting post. You are free to NPC the cryptids as much as you need to, as long as you stick to the behaviours described. ► DREAMSHARING: There is a player plot going on which will allow characters to share dreams! These are specifically more dreams than nightmares, and the mushi-adept characters will be here to help. ► CHILLAX: There isn't any plot twist for this setting, so this is mostly an opportunity to decompress from the last plot and get ready for the future. The Ringmaster will show up occasionally to help with needed medical treatments and check on things, but won't stick around for long.

Comments

[kingsroads]

Strange nods a little, pleasantly surprised. Good, the shield remains stable. Turns out this thing is more powerful than expected.

He gestures to the ground. A spike of earth shoots up, at an angle where it's aiming for the shield. It's only a few inches in diameter, so it's not too big, but it's still large enough that Reira can't ignore it.

[soft_focus]

And...this one doesn't go quite as great. Oh it certainly blocks it fine- the shield even clunking and vibrating slightly as it physically gets held back against it.

The problem is simply that Reira doesn't have that much stamina- they might not have all been full 'blasts', but she's simply not prepared herself for anything striking the shield. With a shaky sigh, her arms finally fall to her sides as the shield vanishes.

"Hhahhhh... hahhh....I don't think...I can block more for a little bit..." That's tiring..!

[kingsroads]

As the shield vanishes, Strange gestures with his hand and the spike of earth retreats back to the ground as well. If Reira says she's done, then they're done. And he'll offer an honest assessment.

"To be frank, it is a good shield. But none of the magic I cast was anything close to full strength." There's an unspoken 'and so, it'll be useless in an actual fight' but Strange refrains from saying so. "More practice with the shield should increase your stamina and make you more used to the magic. And when you practice, the practice should be closer to what we did instead of simply casting the shield."

If Reira wanted to defend herself against things, then she had to practice...well, defending herself against things.

[soft_focus]

It takes a few moments of gathering her breath to steady herself enough for a response- during those moments, she seems to nod rather mutely, listening to Strange's words with the slightest frown. It's a bit of an embarrassment- but then again, she reminds herself, it took her this long to make certain she could hold the shield for prolonged periods without being hit.

At the very least, she's got something that can take a blow in an emergency, rather than that risk. That thought gives her a little more hope, but she does have to think now.

"Mnh... So people need to hit it with things... ...Like you?" she asks a little nervously, looking back to Strange. After all, after they're done camping he'll...probably be busy right?

It feels like everyone will, actually.

[kingsroads]

"Like me," Strange responds, giving Reira a little smile. "We need everyone to be able to protect themselves now, not just the Nightrunners." That chaos in the library when the Count split everyone up in the shadows only proves that in Strange's mind.

And really, the more people who know magic, the better.

"If you want me to help boost your magic and strengthen your shield, then I will help. And on the same note, if you want any help with that wind magic you were working on in the Olympics, then I will help with that as well."

Forward dated note confirms it's basically just Faerie Silver Mint so eyy

[soft_focus]

And to that, Reira beams quite loudly. To that, in fact, she almost feels as though she's ready for another go right now, but talking to Tanyuu back in the Athenaeum makes her think twice about saying as much. People can feel strong enough for anything when they're excited, and it just means being even more tired and sore at the end.

So she nods- elation building when he adds that he'll even help with the Wind Magic. "Even that..?" She has to ask all the same, but instead of waiting for an answer she's exploding into description of what she's been doing to practice since then. "I couldn't find any books for it in the Athenaeum, but... ...But I've been sitting in the water, in the middle, to practice- and here, the lake animals like to throw you into the air to play, so I've been able to feel the wind easier that way..!" she adds, barely keeping herself from bouncing in excitement. "And..."

And slowly, she pauses, carefully pulling out a large coin from her pocket. It would be about palm-sized...in Strange's hand, at least. For Reira, it's a bit larger, just large enough that it becomes somewhat awkward to hold and hide in one's hand. "...Since using feathers gave my arms feathers, Foster gave me something else to use and think about...it says 'Wind', see?"

'Of Winter's Wind', to be more precise, though she's very careful about how she holds it. "....I have to be careful though, since I didn't get to ask the Ringmaster about what it is..." Best to not push magical things too far...though really, it probably doesn't have much magic on it Anyway.

niiice~

[kingsroads]

Strange listens and nods as Reira rambles about her magic. All right, some of these strategies make sense, and he can already see how he can offer her advice on how best to manipulate the wind like that. He's coming up with more ideas when Strange's train of thought is swiftly derailed as Reira pulls out a coin...and a weird coin at that.

Reira's comment about asking the Ringmaster what it is definitely grabs Strange's attention. Could this thing possibly be magic? Heck, he might be able to figure out if it can do anything himself, without any need to ask the Ringmaster! Strange backs away for a moment before opening his third eye. Surprise Reira, that means he lights himself on fire. The vaguely eye-shaped burn scars on his forehead, hand, and forearm light up with magical flame as Strange squints at the coin.

"Well, that's definitely fae." No shit, Sherlock. "And certainly Winter Court. My knowledge leans more towards Summer. I'm afraid I don't know as much about Winter Court magic to even guess as to what it is or if it can do anything in the first place."

[soft_focus]

It's nice to be able to ramble about it. It's nice to ramble at all- Strange is apparently now one of the lucky people in the circle of 'ramble safe' folk in Reira's head.

She's patient- quite patient, as he looks over the coin, but she definitely jumps at least slightly when he's suddenly on fire because Holy Shit. He's on fire.

...And apparently fine with it, so she opts to focus on the coin instead of commenting. "Mnhh...I just know that it feels cold, and it's really shiny. Even in the dark, it looks shiny," she adds, deciding this is quite important.

On the plus (or perhaps downside, depending on what he'd hoped for), it's only barely magic. Or at least, it's probably nothing meant for more than fancy decoration.

[kingsroads]

On the one hand, Strange was hoping for the coins to be super magic. On the other hand, he knows that it's for the best that the seven year old doesn't have dangerous magic items at her disposal. Strange closes his eyes for a moment and his fire snuffs itself out before he hands the coin back to Reira.

The fire on the tips of his hair is still burning, though. There's no getting rid of that.

"If you feel it works as a focus, then continue to use it." Though he doesn't use a focus himself, Strange has seen the results of others using it. If that's how Reira's magic will work, then that's the best thing for her to do.

"I also have an idea for the wind magic. This won't happen today, as I don't want to tire you out, but tomorrow we'll work on strengthening your shield against the wind itself. If you learn how to help defend against it, then you'll learn more about it."

[soft_focus]

"Mnh. It's definitely better than feathers," she mutters, sighing. The focus, after all, is mostly meant to get things started. (At least, that was how Foster had...sort of explained it. Sort of. Best she can tell it's what he Probably meant)

Once she has more of a grasp on things, they can just go somewhere else. Like training wheels on a bike! ...Not that she knows what those are.

It's more exciting to think about more immediate things anyway, like what Strange says they can do tomorrow. Two birds with one stone! Wow..! "Ah-! Okay..! I'll definitely be ready to practice then!" she declares, nodding furiously. "...I'll stop getting tired if I practice a lot, right?" she adds, somewhat hopeful.

It would, after all, be quite a shame if her stamina for defending herself never improved.

[kingsroads]

Strange nods...and then starts to lecture Reira a bit again.

"Magic isn't just a switch that you can flip on and off. If you truly want to be a magician and truly want to learn the spell, it takes practice and experimentation. And yes, that practice should boost up your stamina as well."

If only because getting Reira active and making her move around more should boost up the stamina by default. He knows she gets some activity just doing her job and walking around the carnival, but it's not the same sort of concentration that could help boost up her magic.

[soft_focus]

It sounds to her like that's how she's been doing it the whole time- thus, there is a sigh of relief, and a small smile. "Phew...good..!" she announces, nodding her head. "I practiced the shield alone a lot...by the time we left the Athenaeum, I could hold it without it blinking, or going away- so that means I didn't waste any time..!"

Such is how she sees it. Better to practice the right thing than the wrong thing, or so she figures. "...If I had food and water and things, would I be able to practice again faster?"

[kingsroads]

He gives Reira a little smile. Her enthusiasm is contagious. And, for someone like Strange who doesn't really believe in stopping or resting when he's working on a spell, he appreciates it.

"You would. Get a meal and a few hours rest and we can practice again this evening, if you want."

After all, it's not like they have anything else to do in the campsite.

[soft_focus]

A meal, and a nap. She can do that. So with a steady nod, Reira replaces the coin in her pocket and makes to do just that. "Okay..! ...Um...I'll come back here then, when it starts to get dark!"

That's 'evening' more or less right? Right.

She makes sure not to forget one last thing before turning and heading off though- "...Thank you." For teaching her, obviously. That means a lot.

[kingsroads]

As Reira starts to head off, Strange stays where he is. After all, he's not tired, he can get a bit more practice in. But as she thanks him, Strange's smile just grows even bigger.

"You're welcome, Miss Akaba. I'll see you tonight!"