Theoretical Magic [ Solo Training ]

He never stopped practicing it. He improved tediously and with slow results. He could not effectively harness wind magic, his possible potential with the dangerous magic not yet achieved. A delicate scale balanced precision and power. With his current ability, he sacrificed one aspect for the other. Wind's wild personality created a wrestling match for power. It had a mind of its own and it seemed to enjoy making things difficult for Ariel. To incur damage, he relinquished his hold over it. A combination of both control and strength required more training. An added hassle, his mind, also weakened his progress. His mind, wired for strength magic, interfered with his ability to even conjure wind.

verbum comitem [ cxv // m ]
word count [ 115 // 1000 ]

It had been a few weeks since he returned from Heliohapt and he still had difficulty mastering wind magic. He felt so damn frustrated! He clenched his staff in his hands. He breathed heavily, tired, exhausted, and weary. But he was determined. He'd master wind magic if it was the last thing he did! Well, okay, so not at that sort extreme level - he had a ton of other shit to complete before he died, thank you very much - but he was at least very motivated for not much of reason at all. It really was just pure stubbornness. He started - albeit not much at all - to learn wind magic, and he would finish learning wind magic.

verbum comitem [ ccxxxii // m ]
word count [ 232 // 1000 ]

He stormed into his small dorm and face-planted onto his bed. He spent his whole damn break working on the frustrating magic. Guess how far he got. Nowhere. Ab-so-lut-ly nowhere. He swore, if he did anything more that had to do with magic, he'd shoot himself in the heart. He. Was. Done. Well, for today anyway. Tomorrow would come and he would be back to his regular schedule of lectures and shit. Or, er, to put it simply. He probably could afford to be slightly more specific, but eh, oh well. After his regular and boring classes, he would have to prepare himself for whatever Schwartz was thinking up next. After that, if he had the time, he'd practice. And practice. And sleep.

verbum comitem [ cccxxxv // m ]
word count [ 335 // 1000 ]

He breathed out unsteadily. He reached around him. The rukh responded. They began fluttering, awaiting his command. He grasped for that intangible feeling of... nothingness. Where was it? Where was that feeling? There should be a feeling. Where is it? He snatched what he thought could be it. The wind. He thought it was the wind. It was hard to tell. Usually, the feeling was clearer than the sun. But... Searching for the wind seemed to dull the feeling. Where was it!? He dragged out whatever he caught. A slice of wind flew behind him. Definitely not where he had been aiming. Not that he had been aiming anywhere in the first place.

verbum comitem [ cdlxviii // m ]
word count [ 468 // 1000 ]

"You're trying too hard."

"What?" Ariel turned.

"You can't control wind." So Schwartz says as he conjures a breeze. "You've got to become wind."

"What?"

"Don't be like that. You're smart. You know what I mean."

"No, I don't."

"Alright, let me explain. When you use sound magic, you're not really using it. You let it carry you, right? You and the music merge to become one thing. Strength magic. It isn't really something you control per say. It's just a feeling, right? And you just go along with it."

Ariel nodded, glaring at Schwartz guardedly.

"Same concept. Go ahead. Let me see what you can do."

verbum comitem [ dlxxv // m ]
word count [ 575 // 1000 ]

note;

So... Just go along with it? So... Don't actively search for it, perhaps? He closed his eyes for a fraction of a second. He imagined leaves swirling and twirling in an unpredictable manner. He lifted his head and eyes to the sky. He thought about how lovely breezes were during the summer. He recalled how annoying wind was back when he had long hair. It was a hassle to untangle his hair every damn moment. He slowly reached out to an invisible force, the palm hovering over the ground. He breathed, trying to wipe his mind of any thoughts. And... He sighed. Leaves. Cold. Here. There. White. Sky. Quiet. Loud. Angry. Gentle.

verbum comitem [ dclxxxvii // m ]
word count [ 687 // 1000 ]

He beckoned an unsteady wind. It flew around him with more power than he had expected. Surprised and distracted, he jumped off the course. The wind settled too much. He cursed. "Dammit." Schwartz chuckled. He glared. "Shut up, bastard."

He forced his body to relax, to let the wind overcome him. Become him. It was hard. His mind, in all its wandering, hated resting. Hated being glass. Hated being nothing. But... Determination fueled him. A new determination this time. He eyed Schwartz, not bothering to hide his mischievous grin. Schwartz caught him watching, and he rose his brow. "I guess word's getting out I'm single. Unfortunately, teachers aren't really supposed to be dating their students," he flirted playfully.

"Who cares what others think?" Ariel played along, already use to their strange, flirtatious banter. It didn't signify anything romantic, of course. Actually, it was sort of the opposite. Underlying the playfulness, there was a sense of anger and frustration.

"Hmm, I'm tempted, but I want to keep my job. So, I hate to disappoint you, but no thanks."

verbum comitem [ dccclxii // m ]
word count [ 862 // 1000 ]

That's basically how things went after that. Days went by. Ariel practiced tirelessly. With Schwartz giving him helpful tips, Ariel improved. Quickly. He gobbled up every last bit of Schwartz's words. That wasn't the only thing Ariel did. Recalling the two blue magicians he had met, he worked on water magic as well. The feeling working with water was like working with music. He let it carry him with a leisurely and controlled pace. It was easier than wind magic. He wasn't sure if there really was any magic harder than wind magic. Perhaps lightning magic would prove him wrong? Or maybe an intangible heat. He wasn't exactly sure. He supposed he could figure out that sort thing later after he nailed down wind and water. Huh, the two 'w's. The only 'w's.

And that mischievous smile on his face? That was actually why he learned water magic. In other words, on a random day, he ambushed Schwartz and soaked him wet.

verbum comitem [ mxxiv // m ]
word count [ 1024 // 1000 ]