Thurvishar D'Lorus (thatdlorusbrat) wrote in valloic, @ 2021-06-01 09:15:00 |
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Entry tags: | !: action/thread/log, the raven cycle: blue sargent, ₴ inactive: thurvishar d'lorus |
Log: Blue & Thurvishar Chat Powers & Memories
Characters: Blue Sargent & Thurvishar D'Lorus
What: Blue tries to cheer Thurvishar up after Thurvishar's memory update; they talk working on her amplification power
When: This last weekend
Warnings: None!
It was Thurvishar’s third day of being awake and mostly bedridden, and he was already bored.
It wasn’t as if he desired an exciting life filled with cutthroat adventures and friends that were frankly more heroic than he was; Thurvishar was perfectly content puttering around stacks of books and making smaller discoveries rooted in history and magical theory than in getting caught up in the nonsense he was undoubtedly caught up in at home. But he hated feeling useless more than anything, and the drain that this memory update had caused his magic had been a brutal one. His magic was gone, regrowing, and Thurvishar felt as if he hadn’t slept in 60 hours, mostly because back home, he hadn’t. Dr. Strange had collected his unconscious form from his office and had brought him back home - Thurvishar was certain that was worthy of a pie and a loan of a particularly rare book; the man had effectively tucked him in - and now that he was feeling better several days later, friends were visiting and Thurvihsar was at least making an effort out of seeming human again, and not being a ball of anxiety, exhaustion, and worry.
So he was glad when Blue had suggested a visit, and greeted her at the door, walking like an 80 year old with severe arthritis. “Oh good,” he said, and let her in. “Entertainment. I hope you’ve come up with a good monologue or some fun historical facts, because I’m about to go mad without my trove at the office. Tea?”
"What if my monologue is filled with historical facts? I have a wealth of knowledge given who my boyfriend is and I've been practicing," Blue said in lieu of an actual greeting. Upon hearing that Thurvishar was 'under the weather' given a memory update from home, Blue had put herself on the task of knitting something as a get well soon gift. But then that was going to require bringing it to him, and Blue did not think only socks were an appropriate visitation reason.
This was why she was weighed down in two heavy reusable bags that were sewn together from upcycled clothing. Inside were socks and also an assortment of ice cream, yogurt, and cheese from the market. There was also— "Oh, I've got you covered on the tea." Blue pulled out a smaller satchel of a bled she had swiped from her mom, shaking it excitedly.
"I can't promise it tastes good, but it will help you feel better. Or be a mild hallucinogen. Same thing, right?" She gave Thurvishar a once over, before sliding in past him. "Are you trying to tough it out? You do not have to play hostess. I think I can figure my way around if you'll do me a favor and sit."
“What-- is all that?” Thurvishar asked, his face twisted into an expression that was trying to be disapproving and instead was mostly delight. Presents were never something he could hide his appreciation over. “Gods, Blue. Tell me you still have something to sell at market.”
He made a complicated gesture with an arm that translated to roughly ‘I-don’t-need-to-sit; I’m-perfectly-capable-of-making-tea, but-if-you-insist’ and did as instructed, slumping into one of the chairs that made up a little conversation area by one of his many bookshelves. Truthfully, Blue hadn’t been wrong - the simple journey to the door and back was enough to exhaust him, which was so annoying he wanted to lose consciousness again so he wouldn’t have to be useless in front of his friends.
Still, he got his shit together, sighing dramatically, and observed Blue puttering around the kitchen. Interesting. He’d never learned how to do the stove - magic. Who knew those buttons were good for something?
“Is your group quite over their travel into the past?” he asked conversationally, leaning back in his chair. Not all of them had gone, of course, just some, but that was almost certain to be worse than that whole crew staying together.
Blue, in typical whirlwind fashion, waved off Thurvishar's concern about having something to sell at market. Thurvishar had done a lot of things to warrant some free gifts. She was more interested in getting a kettle on the stove. A stove that had seemed a little under-used.
She didn't know her way around Thurvishar's kitchen, but she would get by—opening drawers until she found what she needed without asking, putting the water on, sorting out the tea. She was holding up two mugs when she was asked about the past. She looked more amused by the answer she was about to give.
"Oh, you know. My boyfriend literally can't do something without having a history anecdote to share in his back pocket, so that was like a field trip for him. I don't know if he will be exactly over the trip—adventure," Blue corrected herself. "But I should be thanking you for getting them back, you had some part in it."
Blue paused, frowning a little as she gave Thurvishar another look, slumped in his seat. "I hope this isn't some kind of karmic retaliation. Triggered memories you weren't ready for, putting you down for a while, for helping."
Thurvishar shrugged, winced, and clearly regretted shrugging. He said nothing about Blue clattering away in his kitchen - as far as he was concerned, she was in the In Group - and smiled a little too himself over her assessment of Gansey’s adventures. He’d seen Gansey staring at the architecture of the old city, of course. Slack-jawed joy was hard to miss.
At Blue’s question, he looked back to her, expression dampening ever so slightly. “I’m sure it was a coincidence,” he demurred; “all I did was a lot of lying and misdirection. That coven was way out of their depth. Stephen and I were doing them a favor, getting that stone out of their hands.”
He accepted the mug and held it carefully, breathing in the steam. She was right; it did him a world of wonders. “Have you had-- what did you call it? Triggered memories? Or do you know anyone who has?”
Blue dropped into a chair across from Thurvishar after passing off a mug. She pulled her legs up and settled into a spot to indicate this was where they were going to have the conversation, so that he did as little movement as possible. She was very adept in handling stubborn men who didn't want to take a break even when they were sporting injuries. Okay, well, she was the same way but it was the principle of the matter.
She took a slow sip of her tea—not cringe worthy, she chose wisely—and carefully considered her next words. "I can't say I have the pleasure," Blue said, but the whole ordeal sounded awful. She wouldn't be able to sit still if something strange happened at home and she couldn't do anything about it. They had been lucky, mostly lucky.
"And you might be the first. I've seen it happen to other people, but nothing like this." Blue gestured at Thurvishar and his descent in youthful arthritis. "I'd like to think there isn't anything else that could happen back home for us, but the last I heard Ronan flew off on a hoverboard. And he told me that. Gansey and I were chained to a tree in Oregon. I'm sure there is more after, it's a cliffhanger not an ending."
Staring down Thurvishar, she drank again from her mug, before adding, "Do you think you'll have more after this?"
Thurvishar did a wonderful job at pretending to be dumb and missing Blue’s various orchestrated attempts at keeping him seated and pliable, but he did, at least, follow her lead and enjoy his tea without rising to putter around. “I would dearly hope that being chained to a tree with your boyfriend is the set up to a problem, and not the solution,” he said mildly, having successfully hidden a stricken expression at the thought. Neither Blue nor Gansey were people he wanted chained to anything (against their will).
At her question, he took a breath, and gave a nod. “We’ve-- an enemy back home,” he said evenly, and took a careful sip of tea. “Who was able to revive some magic that I dearly wish had stayed destroyed. And, apparently, in the mean time got tight with the goddess of revenge who sicc’d a Kraken on us.” He made a face. “Suffice to say, I’ll not be eating calamari again, but other than that-- lines have been drawn. I dare say we’re on the eve of learning who wins this war, and who loses.”
He cradled his tea cup, warming his hands. Thurvishar wasn’t the type to mope, but he did mull. “It sounds as if we’re both waiting for the other shoe to drop, you and I.”
"A purposeful chaining. We were trying to prevent loggers from cutting down black walnut trees," Blue said, smiling proudly. It felt like a lifetime ago when the only thing she had to worry about was bail and how to get back to the engine-less Pig that had been taking them across the United States.
But the grin quickly faded as Thurvishar explained his situation. Blue wanted to be empathetic, say something clever and comforting like we've all got enemies back home, you'll figure it out, but she was stuck on the whole Kraken situation. Revenge goddess. And Blue had thought their demon was bad. She let out a low breath. "So, major cliffhanger. Season ending cliffhanger."
Blue gave Thurvishar an apologetic look as he mulled. He looked much more pensive than usual, and that was saying something. "Most of my life was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Always had to be careful, and sensible, and remember that I was forever cursed. I don't actually want it to drop at this point."
“Oh. Well. I retract any concern I might have had about your chaining situation; I’m sure the loggers were the ones with the biggest headaches,” Thurvishar returned archly, even if he was greatly relieved that neither of his friends were on the brink of tragedy. One less thing to worry on should they find themselves returning home, at least.
He’d been in Vallo long enough to know what “season ending cliffhanger” meant and gave a slight nod of his head in agreement. “I can’t know what having your particular curse hanging over my head might be like, but I certainly can empathize with being forced to stay careful and sensible. I went… briefly mad during a period at university, but other than that, dutiful and dull was the watchword.” He made a face. “Fat lot of good it did either of us. At least here, we’ve opportunities to expand our abilities, our interests. Maybe even get a hobby outside of running for our lives.” He gestured to the socks she had brought him with a half-smile.
Blue eyed the socks then back to Thurvishar, a small grin growing. "I could teach you how to knit if you were confined to this chair longer than a week. Or even if you're not, no time like the present," Blue said with a shrug. She meant to move the conversation along, fuss a bit more like her mom might in that friendly-but-not-overbearing way. But Blue's mind snagged on expand our abilities, and she couldn't seem to unhear it.
"Mine, I think, are stuck," Blue said around a sip from her tea. "My abilities, that is. Being here has helped—did you know I couldn't kiss Gansey when we first got here? I mean, I couldn't ever, part of the curse. I had to learn how to switch it on and off, you know how it is." She had done that neat little trick with Thurvishar a few times now.
"But I haven't done much more with it since then." Blue's brows knit together as she frowned into her tea. "I feel like I should want to, but I don't know if it would be helpful or where I could be. I'm back to being just a prop, and it's no fun."
Thurvishar perked up at that. Anything magic-related was probably as effective as caffeine at waking him up, even if he knew better than to stand and putter about looking for texts. “Not to dismiss the work you successfully completed by now being able to snog your boyfriend,” he said, “but if you can turn it on and off, perhaps you could control it to a greater capacity to become more powerful, more empowered. Or even its area of effect. We have to train telepaths in similar ways,” he explained, picking up steam. “As you know, I had telepathic abilities back home; it was largely utilized for gathering knowledge on other people. I was little more than a means to an end, hardly rating as a person at all save by my friends. Your own abilities have largely functioned at the whims of others as well. I wonder....”
He cut himself off and gestured to the book case; a book inched out of the case of its own accord, Thurvishar scowling at it. For a moment, it looked as if the book would float over without incident, but his magic just wasn’t there: it crashed to the floor like a shot bird. “Damn,” he said, disgusted, but pointed at it regardless. “That’s a text on how telepaths are trained. I’d hazard a guess that your ability to amplify magic would be quite similar. A lot of it is just-- meditation, clearing out your mind space, exerting your will, knowing when to stop - and you’ve already mastered selective use of it, which is something many telepaths struggle with.”
It was more than he’d spoken in days. He always functioned better when he had a project, after all.
Blue wanted to take credit—maybe it was the tea—that caused Thurvishar to brighten significantly. And in some ways she could, it was her amplifying ability after all that was giving some life back into him. She leaned in trying to follow his train of thought: telepaths, powered and empowered, area of effect. Before she could process any of it, a book was sliding off the shelf and Blue was leaping to her feet.
"Sit, sit, stop using your magic for a few seconds. That's why I am here—" Blue said, going to the bookshelf and pulling the half-moved book. She flipped it open, scanning a few pages. This seemed like a lot, even if Thurvishar was saying it was as simple as clearing her headspace. There were things she wanted, and they were simple things, easy things, but a part of her did want more.
Before she could catch herself, Blue blurted out, "Will you teach me?" Surprised by herself, she waved a quick hand. "Not right now, obviously, but you were trained this way with your telepathic abilities I assume, and while I appreciate a book on how to do it, I can already feel myself falling asleep and being distracted. I'm more of a hands-on, apply real world techniques kind of person."
Thurvishar allowed himself to be herded back to obedience as she grabbed the book and chattered at him, leaning back against the pillows and reminding himself of the many virtues of patience and calm (fuck them, honestly). Still, at her question, he couldn’t help but sit up a little straighter.
He was in a unique position to help her, he realized. Perhaps it would have been possible before the memory update, but spending time with Senera - who had had her own powers manipulated to be more powerful - had given him an insight into what worked, what didn’t, what was immoral and what was most helpful to the novice pupil. He undoubtedly knew more now about power amplification and training than he had in Vallo say, six days earlier.
“I think we can do something,” he agreed slowly, considering her. Thurvishar had never actually been a professor - ugh, youths - but Blue wasn’t far from his age and she certainly would apply herself. He knew it by the hungry expression on her face. “Hand me that book - I’ll review it myself and see what can be taken from it that’s applicable to your needs. Honestly,” he murmured a little more quietly, “if nothing else, we should probably investigate ways for you to protect yourself in the event that someone wishes to use your powers for ill. A--- friend of mine,” he stumbled upon the word ‘friend’, because it wasn’t right at all, “named Senera had her telepathic abilities manipulated for years in order to use her as a weapon. It permanently injured her abilities to feel emotion properly. With things coming out of the forest all the time…” he let that possibility linger, and flipped through his book. “Yes, I think we could very much give you a stronger foundation of magic, here. Will meeting once a week work for you? Fair warning,” he added, a professorial nasty sort of grin on his face, “I do assign homework.”
Blue was not normally a self-conscious person, but there was a moment—as brief as it was—where she worried Thurvishar would politely turn her down. Telepathy was similar not the same; there were too many things that could go wrong; Blue wasn't experienced enough; Thurvishar didn't have the time. They were all pointless worries, but ones that could breed doubt. Being able to turn off her ability to be with Gansey was a valid choice, but she wanted to be more than that. Her outer world had dwindled down to this island of Vallo, it was time to go travelling in her inner one instead.
She slowly passed over the book, as it seemed like the answer was more yes than no. Blue didn't miss the way Thurvishar stumbled over Serena and her manipulation and Blue was quick to step in: "It wouldn't get that bad. I wouldn't let it." Not that it was in her complete control, but she felt the need to say it anyway. "And I've defended myself enough times without my abilities before. It's kind of my thing now."
Her face started to brighten at will meeting once a week work? and she was saying yes, yes, yes before she heard the second part. Her expression immediately soured, comedically. "Fair warning, I hate homework, so it's going to be a toss up whether or not I do it. This is going to be great—after you're not hobbling around."
“I’ll strive to make it homework that you both like, and benefit from,” he responded dryly, but not without a smile. “But yes, let’s give me time to actually be able to perform basic magic before I try to have at any kind of teaching it.”
Some people might get tired thinking of lesson plans; not Thurvishar. He was already formulating a basic month-long series of lessons (following a few tests for Blue to complete so he could measure a baseline of her abilities so that they could better appreciate any improvements he was certain she could make). “Will you bring me that notebook and a pen before you run off, please? I’d like to take a few notes.”
"I already see your brain working," Blue said, fetching the notebook and pen. She resisted the urge to compare herself to a butler, considering she had insisted he stay put. The knowledge that he listened to her outweighed her outrage at being told to get things for someone currently reclining in a chair.
Blue resumed her position in the opposite chair, dragging it closer to him, along with her tea. "I'm not running off. I have a monologue and some historical facts to still deliver while you plan out homework that I will apparently like and benefit from. You're setting a high bar, Thurvishar."
She settled back in her chair, taking a long sip of her tea with her most judgmental look, and watched him plan her future.