ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇss ᴏғ ᴘʀᴇsᴛɪᴅɪɢɪᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ (cigam) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-06-21 06:37:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !complete, emma swan, zatanna zatara |
Who: Zatanna Zatara & Emma Swan
What: Due to dreams, Emma's magic gets kind of spazzy so she seeks out some assistance
When: Before Emma and the family went on vacation!
Where: Magic Guild HQ
Rating/Warnings: Naaaaaaaah
Status: Complete
In some ways, Emma almost expected it. The dreams were steady in their abuse and while she’d hoped that returning magic to Storybrooke, Killian’s return from the Underworld, Hades’ defeat, she’d hoped it meant a little bit of time, before the next visit of chaos, before the next unruly thing. But of course, splitting Regina’s core personalities wasn’t a smart choice and of course the influx of new people to Storybrooke would bring yet more problems. And of course it would all spell some dark tragedy. Which was apparently her own death. To top it off, her magic started to get fritzy on her. As technical a term as she could come up with right then, really. It flared up and it fizzled and just wasn’t reliable, hadn’t been like this since before she really started to get used to it. It just felt like her magic was part of her, was a thing she’d always had. But with unreliable magic in this place, that was just a catastrophe waiting to happen. Naturally, Emma was trying to find some kind of way to fix it, since therapy to accept her impending death wasn’t really going to cut it. She hadn’t wanted to go to Regina, load this on her at the moment along with wedding planning and baby raising, and the Magic Guild seemed like a good place to start on her own. Besides, Zatanna had been far more helpful than Dr Hopper ever had been. Tarot readings over therapy for sure. But for now, Emma was just looking for answers, maybe in books, that might explain why her magic was acting up, other than the whole ‘every savior dies’ spiel. For Zee, the Guild was something of a sanctuary - she was pleased it happened to be like that for others too; spending time there meant you were never sure who of the various members you’d run into. She’d given up the wine, of course - sometimes she’d have a glass of something rich and burgundy while she researched or even just checked on what supplies they’d need to restock - but the library in particular carried the faint aroma of tea. Along with the antique pages of books, that old musty smell, those books lined up row after row with their spines facing outward. The oolong tea itself, steam wafted from the cup she carried, gave off the scent of raisins (oddly enough) and smoke - maybe a bit like pot, even, but it really wasn’t that. Just tea. It was also possible her nose was kerflooey thanks to her pregnancy. She happened to be in today making notes on what books were ‘checked out’ of the library (not that she had an iron-clad system, basically she just allowed people to borrow what they wanted if they didn’t feel like sitting here - with the notion they’d eventually return the tomes), marking everything down. Then she happened across Emma, and went over to say hello. “Well, what brings you here?” she smiled warmly, setting her things down on the table. “It’s been some time.” Zatanna saw Emma at her wedding, right around when she figured out she was expecting - though now, it seemed like they were due a catching up. Seeing Zatanna was always strangely calming; Emma was sure it was because the other woman exuded a sense of knowledge and capability that Emma knew she could just unclench all those tense muscles that she constantly knew were wound so tight. Weight of the world and all that. “It feels like ages, with so many changes.” Emma was more than pleased for Zatanna and her impending motherhood, the woman was practically made for it in her opinion. She couldn’t wait to see what dark haired little beauty came wailing into the world. “How’re you feeling?” With Orange County there were concerns for just about everything, and the journey through pregnancy was shaky at the best of times, never mind adding in this crazy place and it’s random crap. The best thing to do was undoubtedly to just push through with optimism and friends. “I just popped in to look through some stuff, if that’s okay? I just have a few dream-related questions coming up.” Like if it was possible for her magic to just desert her based on dreams, which was likely, if she were honest, since her magic was tied entirely to the dreams in the first place. “Surprisingly, I feel great,” Zatanna responded - and that was true. Now that she was a bit into her second trimester, she felt something of a renewed energy. Not to mention she could actually eat again (oh, and she was eating quite a bit as well - it took work to make a person, she needed the extra calories). “I must be into that time of ‘glowing’ that everyone talks about.” She did have brighter skin, a healthy flush to it, a more vibrant expression in her deep blue eyes - not so run down and tired, though she knew that as she expanded she’d start feeling winded and fatigued again. Good thing the House was able to work around her - she wouldn’t have to go up stairs when she literally couldn’t. She took a seat and leaned in to see which selections Emma was reading. “Of course, you’re always welcome here,” Zee nodded. “What’s happening in your dreams?” The glowing period was the best part of the pregnancy, or at least, Emma remembered a lot of bits being good. Even when she was bloated and sore and Niko was squirming everywhere, it was still miraculous and enjoyable. “Oh, just enjoy what you can of it,” even when complaining, Emma doubted many people would change a thing. “Maybe you’ll get lucky and just glow for the rest of it.” Wishful thinking? Or maybe it was just a matter of perspective. “Um,” she honestly wasn’t sure what she was trying to find, or even if she’d find anything, “Death prophecies, final battles, wonky magic. The usual really.” There was always something. “I’m trying to see if there could be something influencing my ability to use my magic through the prophecy visions, or if…. It’s just a psychosomatic thing?” If it was all in her head she could deal with that, at least if she knew she’d be able to protect her kids if something did happen. But if something was stopping her using magic at all, well that would be something else. Really, Emma wasn’t too sure about anything right then. She trusted that should something dire be happening, Killian or Regina would give her a heads up. “Hm - “ Zatanna’s brow furrowed, and she got up to rummage through the various rows of books - there must be something else she could find for Emma. “Magic is strongly tied to emotion, as you know. Part of being successful at spellcasting is understanding the accountability of both sides of the coin - light and dark, good and bad. It’s about balance.” And if something threw off that balance, then it could lead to many glitches when attempting even the simplest of magical feats. She pulled a book written by the Dalai Lama himself off of the shelf - it was amazing what a little disciplined self-focus could achieve. “I think reading about meditation, and putting that into practice, may help a little?” she suggested. “If it makes you feel better, I don’t sense anything ‘off’ about your magic. It’s as it always has been.” Which would suggest that any glitches were likely going to be tied to a less than stable mental state. It made sense to Emma, of course, that her own emotional state would affect the state of her magic. It’d been like that before she accepted things in Storybrooke, when Zelena cast her curse that would take away her magic, Emma’s own mental acceptance of magic and all it entailed into her life was the way to really tap back into that, and for her to fully commit to using it properly. Maybe that’s all it was when it came to this, the dreams and the death prophecy within them, affecting her own ability to compartmentalise and trust her powers like she had previously. “A little better, but that does mean that I’m the problem, and I’m not sure what it is.” Her dreams weren’t the dire straits for her confrontation with Pan, or even the confusion and back and forth with Zelena, maybe it was just all the mystery surrounding her battle that would, apparently, be against Gideon. Which was complex since, in Emma’s dreams, he wasn’t even born yet. “Meditation might help though, it really couldn’t hurt.” Before, Emma would’ve scoffed at the idea, less so now, when she understood things and herself a lot better. “The answers may reveal themselves in due time - the dreams do like to leave us at cliffhangers,” Zatanna smiled sympathetically. “It’s kind of an awkward self-fulling prophecy because we spend so much time stressing about what stresses us out in a dream, we’re just...a ball of knots and tension anyway.” Then when you finally did dream ‘the big reveal’ or whatever else, it was oftentimes not as you originally thought. The trials and tribulations of basically experiencing two different lives simultaneously. She set down the old, dusty books - the art of meditation has been around for centuries, seemed like since the beginning of time, and Zee felt as if the numerous health benefits were well worth the effort to learn. “I’m always looking for extra yoga partners too,” she added hopefully. Self-fulfilling prophecies were something that Emma understood, it was like her whole life in the dreams had been a path towards that. The entire curse was engineered in such a way that they ultimately created their own trials and tribulations just through the belief that they’d happen. “God, right. Even knowing that the likelihood of it happening is slim, there’s still a lot of stress around it.” And Emma tried not to focus on it at all, because she had plenty to do here, and her kids didn’t need a mom who was distracted by things that might not even happen. “Meditation might help, keep me centered and focused.” Keep her on track. “I mean, if you don’t mind a yoga partner who hasn’t done it in years, then I’m all in for that.” Health wise it would be good, and keeping her in a semblance of a routine too. That would be good for her. Honestly, Zatanna couldn’t stress the benefits of yoga enough. She’d always had sort of a ‘zen’ about her, and maybe growing up in a traveling circus contributed to that - everything was always so hectic, she had to learn to take those moments of peace and tranquility where she could get them. “It’s like riding a bike, I can show you a few things and you’ll be ready,” she promised. “As I get bigger I might have to focus on doing different positions but that’s no trouble.” There were just some that weren’t good because they reduced blood flow to the uterus (like positions on her back) or ones that upset her center of gravity - now that she was in her second trimester, that was starting to be a thing anyway. Annoying clumsiness. Oh, now she was all excited. It would be fun. Zee hadn’t had a regular yoga partner since Elaine moved away - or before that, actually, when she got too busy with her boyfriend or whatever he was. That happened sometimes. Yoga, some meditation, getting herself to a place where she was calm and okay, that would be a good start on helping herself to find her chill. Stressing over every little thing was probably part of her problem, and figuring out a way to let that just fall away at times, that was likely going to help. “Hey, they always say healthy mind, healthy body… Or is it the other way around? Either way,” Emma tapped on the books, sure that she could actually get into this with the possibility of leveling out the stress in her life. “I’m a little surprised that this isn’t a more wider used coping tool around here.” Everyone had some kind of stress in their lives, she didn’t doubt that. Orange County just liked to add a really different kind of stress. “Maybe someday I’ll get to be as chill as you are.” Cutting out coffee again might help. A few small changes could actually make all the difference. “I might pick your brain for tea recommendations too.” “Now that is something I’ll always recommend. You have to come over for a beginner’s yoga lesson but also to see my tea station at the house, it’s rather elaborate,” Zee chuckled sheepishly. She had hooks for all her colorful mugs, mason jars with homemade labels, baskets and boxes. All in the same spot, a vintage cabinet because she’d taken a corner just for her tea collection. John wasn’t as much of a fan, but he knew how much she drank the stuff. In fact, she had a cup of oolong with her now - something she sipped on while talking, and it gave off a pleasant aroma. “Though yes, I’m surprised more aren’t into yoga as well. I suggested it to a young man who was experiencing some anxiety - his own glitchy magic, I think - and he admitted he never considered it before. But if I can open people’s eyes to the idea, then,” she shrugged. “Why not?” Why not indeed. It seemed like just the best of sense in the long run, but sometimes it did take people pointing out these options, Emma likely wouldn’t have made it to meditation as an option as quickly as Zatanna pointing it out to her. “I’d love to, maybe seeing all the fun options would work towards getting me completely off the coffee.” She knew that part of her tension and anxiety issues came from how much coffee she drank, and if she could find an alternative for herself, it’d help all the more. “At least it’s some kind of answer and progress, which is something around here.” Having something she could do, rather than just sitting and waiting to see if it cleared up, that was better than she usually had to expect. “You’re such a lifesaver.” She guessed dealing with the magical crap that came out of here on the regular extended itself to that though. Having a solution, even what seemed like the smallest thing or goal to work toward, that really did do wonders. Zatanna would help out when she could - she obviously couldn’t fix everything, but she could make sure she was there for her friends at least. “I do what I can,” she smiled. “And things will be alright, Emma. You’ll see.” They always did manage to turn out okay in the end - whatever obstacles Orange County threw at them, well, they knew how to hit back harder by now. It was a part of them, just like this wacky and wonderful world. |