Yuna Lee just wants to help (to_zanarkand) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2013-08-12 15:28:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, magius, yuna |
And as for love...
Who: Yuna, Magius
What: A long overdue dinner and chat!
When: Just before the body-swap plot.
Where: A restaurant somewhere.
Ratings/Warnings: PGish. No triggers, mainly these two are just adorable.
Status: Complete!
Magius smiled as he settled to his seat at the table and nodded to Yuna. “Sorry that took so long. Seems like life has been a little odd lately.” Odder than normal, even, for this place. But the work was done and they sat once more in the restaurant they had talked in so few weeks ago.
Magius wore a simple red polo shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes, a relaxation from his work clothing of a button up shirt and good pants. It was a day off, after all, and even he needed some relaxation.
The mode of dress made Yuna feel just slightly overdressed in her nice blouse, though she'd opted for jeans and sandals to go with it. She was feeling a little off in general, really, probably because the days had been growing odder for her, too.
She tugged on the bottom of her shirt a bit, under the table, and smiled, "It's no trouble, really. Life has been so crazy for all of us, no one's to blame for that."
Magius smiled to her then, and fingered his water glass, before raising it for a sip.. “How is your family? Have things settled out?” He had heard, netwise, about Lulu going away, which saddened him, some.
"I think... they've settled as much as they intend to, if that makes any sense. We haven't heard from Lulu, and I know that we all worry about her, but it's faded off a bit. Like old wounds after they begin to heal, I suppose. Rikku's cheerfulness helps."
Her expression, which had started out a little more serious, slid straight into a smile at the mention of Rikku. It was hard not to think of her little blonde cousin without feeling like some of the girl's energy had transferred to her.
"And you? How has your life been? And your magic?"
“Good.” Magius nodded, hopeful that things would be peaceful for Yuna and her family for now. “Life has been getting better. Luisa moved in with me, and my magic is... well, growing stronger.” It was like, since he had stopped dreaming, his knowledge slowly grew toward some end point, But he had no clue what that point would be.
Yuna wasn't sure if seeing pyreflies in places counted as magic, so she decided not to mention it for now, "That's good, I think. If you want it to be growing stronger, I mean. I remember when you first showed me what you could do, I was so surprised. I'm not sure I can imagine that power growing, or being able to control it, myself."
She took a sip off of her glass of water, and smiled more widely, "Congratulations on things with Luisa. I'm glad that you're so happy, I really am."
“It seems to be progressing in a controllable manner with the knowledge coming along with it. The way things seem to work in that dream world, spells and magic must be studied to work, so at least I don’t have to worry most of the time about magic going off unexpectedly.” Magius smiled, hmming. It was weird, but slowly becoming more familiar, more like him.
And then he smiled wider too. “Thank you. I did not expect it, nor did I welcome it truly at first. I am an old man, compared to most, and to have love arrive so unexpectedly, with a younger woman felt odd, and very like I was somehow cheating, or something. But she makes me smile, and she challenges me to think harder, better. I cannot deny my heart and my head.” Nor his body.
"It gives me hope for everyone else, honestly," Yuna remarked, with an even brighter smile than before, "I don't think it's cheating at all. I think... It makes me feel like it's not too late for me, either, someday. That it's never too late for anyone. And that's so important, that realisation that love can come from unexpected places, at any time in your life, as long as you allow it."
Magius nodded to her. “If you’ll forgive my saying so, you are a very beautiful woman, Yuna, and I think, if you look, someday it will find you.” He nodded. “I did not think love would find me again, but it did. Now I believe anything can happen.” He grinned. “Sort of like magic.”
Yuna giggled a bit, "Well, I think that working with you and my own... developments... have made me more willing to believe in anything. It's hard to ignore the existence of magic when it's sitting right there in front of you, and all around you. Having faith in things is suddenly easier. Even love, which seems ... more fleeting than even the strongest magic sometimes."
“Good. I hope that life brings you good things, and as for love... it is the strongest magic, my dear lady. More powerful than the Gods themselves.” He smiled softly. “Even death itself has a hard time standing against love.”
"I'll take your word for it... You would know better than I." Yuna replied, with a smile and a slight bow of her head. It was a mark of respect from her dreams, and she'd had an increasingly hard time shaking the habit of it.
After a pause, she tilted her head off to the side, and added, "You really are such a source of inspiration to me. You've accomplished so much, and it makes me feel like I can, too. So I... made the decision, I want to be a pediatrician. I know it will take years to finish, but I really believe I can do it."
“Well chosen, Yuna!” A smile spread over his face. “I have no doubt you can do it. If I can ever lend you aid, please tell me.” He grinned at her, eyes dancing with warmth. “The world needs more healers of good spirit and heart and you have both.”
"I think I'll... probably need a lot of aid from you, actually." Yuna admitted, ducking her head a bit, "I'm not sure where to get started, though I have all kinds of books and pamphlets about programs. I think I need references, and you could help there, too."
It was a wonderful feeling to hear the pride in Magius's voice. She didn't want to fail him, and made the decision right then and there that she wouldn't. That was that.
“All I can do, I will. You have my word on it.” He would back her to the end and back. Magius made a decision then to make sure of it. He would make sure he gave her whatever backing he could. “I can do that and I know a few teachers in the medical colleges nearby, some of whom have instructed me in my continuing education. I can talk to them about starting your path and get back to you with their advice, or simply refer you to them yourself, if you would rather.”
"I wouldn't mind it, if you spoke to them. You would know better what to ask them, so the advice will be a little more focused coming from them to you." Yuna had to control the urge to bounce in her chair a bit. Now that Magius was on board with it, she felt like it might really be happening!
"I thought that some of the general courses I took in college while I was going through the nursing program might carry over and cut some time off of things. I need to make some calls to see if credits transfer. I'm wondering which place to go to, as well. I want to try for the best one in the area."
Magius nodded. “Then so I shall.” He was more than willing to do so. She was bright, skilled, and smart, and dedicated, and she cared. And he was filled with the desire to see her succeed.
“There are a number. Largely, it depends on how fast a course, and who is teaching. I would advise calling some course counselors at the colleges in the area, and see what appeals, and I will make those calls of my own.” He nodded.
She nodded in return, then smiled, "I'll make those calls, too. There's a lot to get done before the fall semester, but I'm ... confident. And so very grateful for all of your help."
And driven. That was something her and her dream self definitely shared. Stubborn drive to complete a goal. Even if that goal might end with her own destruction. She shook that thought out of her head, and finally looked the menu over, "In my dreams, I think I'm... some kind of healer, too. I never believed in fate before now."
“Yeah? Maybe it is your destiny.” He smiled to her. “My dreams made me a wizard, but healing came with it, so I do not dispute it. This is a very nice time and place. Very nice! And you will do wonders.” He grinned.
"I think I'd want to be a doctor anyway, but I'm also wondering if I might get some of that magic, like I had in the dreams. If I did, I don't think I could just walk around calling myself a healer. I'd still need the license and everything." Yuna was mainly working through the complexities of the situation aloud, but she also knew that Magius must have thought about it from a similar angle.
She grinned at him, "I remember you saying that we didn't have to become people we didn't want to become. That we could shape what the dreams made us into. I think it's a little bit of both, now. The dreams are shaping us, but we decide the form."
Magius nodded. “I agree. It’s not just being it, it is making it legitimate here and now, in this life, and in this world. Magic will never be truly accepted, but as a doctor, you can use the magic in subtle ways with your clients.” His eyes twinkled.
And he nodded again. “Exactly. I don’t think it is destiny in that we must be what the dreams show us. I think of it as a destiny to become our best self. Or our worst. Some bring the darkness from their dreams to the world.” And his face grew grim. “And there must be light to oppose the darkness.”
"I want to be that light," Yuna said, softly. It was almost a whisper. There was so much darkness in the world she came from, but even then, she'd been a light. It didn't feel wrong at all.
Then she nodded in his direction, "And I think that you're a light, too. You bring so much of it to the Clinic, and everyone else in your life. Aspiring to be more like you can't go wrong, I think."
Magius blushed, for real and smiled, to her, warmed and humbled. “Thank you, Yuna. I am grateful that you see me so. I just, always try to help. We all fail sometimes, and we all win. I don’t know what to do. Really, most of the time, I just... go by instinct. “ He smiled faintly. “And hope.”
He nodded to her. “If you do your best and help people, then I will be proud to know you, Yuna, as I am now, and more so.”
Yuna bowed her head a bit, "You should know, in a lot of ways you've become almost like a father to me. I don't think my own father would mind that. I want to make you even more proud of me. I want to win, even if I stumble along the way."
Yuna’s words made Magius look down, cheeks blazing and he smiled softly at her. . “And you... I would be proud to be your father, if I were, for you are a good woman and one who makes me see hope. I think if my child had lived, she would have been like you, or so I hope.” And there it was, one of his secrets, laid open as he had not to anyone else, even his girlfriend.
“You will go far, and remember this, Yuna. It is not winning, but learning, that matters. Even if you do not win, I will be proud of you.”