universal star visitor brilliant start!

[incanted]

Eventually Bella and Lexi go to bed - they have to coordinate this; Bella's a reasonably sound sleeper but Lexi's not, so if Bella goes to sleep first Lexi won't be able to drop off with all the random nouns and if Bella goes to sleep second Lexi will wake up when she's trying to sneak around. They get up, and they get ready for school.

+Morning, Brilliance,+ says Bella while she's brushing her teeth.

Comments

[incanted]

"Maybe it's worth trying for just a little bit to see about sensory stuff, and then if they're within okay parameters I do some math about likelihood of cement-sackhood and likelihood of fucking off?"

[cardistry]

"Sure," he says. "Okay. So we want a spell that gives you better movement control, but doesn't copy me specific feedback even when I'm hooked in, is that about right?"

[incanted]

"Right."

[cardistry]

"Okay," he says. "Why don't we do some other stuff and I can think it over while you're sleeping sometime? I'm still not all the way there, I don't think."

[incanted]

"Sure. I think sandcastles was next." She muses over incantations. "There is really no way to command sand to form itself into a castle that doesn't sound silly, is there?"

[cardistry]

"Nope," says Brilliance.

[incanted]

"Oh well. I will sound silly for the sake of doing magic." She designs a sandcastle in her head, something fairly simple she can completely visualize, and aims Brilliance at some yellow sand. "Sand, form up into a castle and stay there!"

[cardistry]

The sand forms up into a castle, and stays there.

This one takes a lot of fine control in the 'doing' stage, more than making glass and much more than just sorting sand into a rainbow.

[incanted]

Bella pays close, devoted attention. She's glad she picked a simple castle.

"Is this taking ongoing mana to stay up?" she asks.

[cardistry]

"It's kind of... tapering off," he says. "There, it's not drawing anymore."

[incanted]

Bella walks up to the castle and pokes it gently to see how it's holding together.

[cardistry]

A little bit of tower crumbles away where she pokes it, but most of the structure stands firm.

[incanted]

"Huh. It doesn't feel wet or anything, it's just hanging out. Neat."

[cardistry]

"Yeah, pretty cool," says Brilliance. "Matter manipulation is supposed to be tough stuff."

[incanted]

"So am I a genius or are you just throwing a lot of mana at the problem or what?"

[cardistry]

"No, it's not takes-a-lot-of-power tough, it's takes-a-lot-of-attention tough," he says.

[incanted]

"Well, that's why I paid attention."

[cardistry]

He laughs.

[incanted]

"So, I'm good at magic?" she asks, smiling.

[cardistry]

"Guess so!" says Brilliance.

[incanted]

"Awesome!"

[cardistry]

Brilliance glimmers. It's much more visually obvious in staff form.

[incanted]

"You think I could pull off a sweet potato yet or should we do some more intermediate stuff?"

[cardistry]

"Try conjuring something else first," he says. "Something with a really simple structure. Like, I don't know, a grain of sand?"

[incanted]

"Okay." Bella picks up a grain of green sand, peers intently at it, and then incants: "I command a new grain of green sand to come to exist."