cooperation

[alicornucopia]

Two girls are moving their hands through the air and speaking together in perfect parallel.

Two girls are looking expectantly at a circle of red chalk on their floor.

Two girls have done something exceptionally stupid.

with Harry (andaisq)

with Isabella (Eva)

with Arcane (kappa)

with Miles (kappa)

with Nick (Rockeye)

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"Well, I don't know what a steam engine is, if that answers your question," says Keo.

The lift comes to a halt and opens on an office with a lot of bookhelves and a desk and some chairs. Kanaat heads for the bookshelves and looks for a book.

[andaisq]

"That's reassuring."

Harry finds a chair and weighs the benefit of sitting down against potentially offending the dragony goddess woman by getting her chair wet. He eventually decides that he's tired enough that he doesn't care if she decides to smite him. As usual.

[alicornucopia]

She doesn't protest about the chair. She rummages in the desk and comes up with square paper and a stick of graphite (there's a rubber grip on it, but it's not wrapped in wood like a pencil). "For your letters," she says.

[andaisq]

"Thanks." He takes the stick and the paper and starts writing.

After a few minutes, he writes out a letter in a cramped, spidery hand, then folds it up and writes "KARRIN, READ THIS" at the top. "Can she respond?" he asks.

[alicornucopia]

"We can summon the paper back again after sending it. Leave room," suggests Keo.

Kanaat has found what he's looking for and is now drawing on the floor.

[andaisq]

Harry nods, then adds "Respond on back" to the note. He reconsiders, takes another sheet, folds it into the first, and scratches out "back" to replace it with "sheet attached". "Okay, I think we're good."

[alicornucopia]

"Did you give her a time constraint on writing back?" Keo asks. "We need to either know when to summon the letter back, or scry on her to find out, and the latter has several disadvantages."

[andaisq]

He slaps his forehead. "Respond on sheet attached" gets a neighbor reading "within one hour". "That sound good to you?" he asks.

[alicornucopia]

"Assuming it gives her enough time," agrees Keo. "First order of business, clothes. If you'll go put your hand in that loop coming off the first circle -" Kanaat is now drawing a second circle - "we can collect whatever clothes you concentrate on, one article at a time."

[andaisq]

He goes to do so. "Can that do other objects? Because I have kind of a lot of magic stuff that I wouldn't want to have to re-enchant."

[alicornucopia]

"I imagine so. They're at least as harmless as you are, I hope?" inquires Keo.

[andaisq]

"...If I'm harmless, they're harmless?" hazards Harry. "Guns don't kill people, people kill people? I use them in self-defense? If it's a problem I can just summon the ones that aren't weaponry and Molly could take the heavy stuff, it'd do her a lot of good anyway. She's bad at the whole "crush your enemies" thing."

[alicornucopia]

"No one is likely to attack you here," says Keo. "If someone does, you can think my name really hard and I'll hear it; I'd rather not have weapons on the campus."

[andaisq]

Harry pouts a bit. They're taking away his toys! "Well, that's a welcome change, I guess. Molly will love the blasting rod. I can still have my staff, though, right? That's a general-purpose tool that I can use to hurt people, but I don't have to. And it's got sentimental value."

[alicornucopia]

"That should be fine. Clothes first, though, pick something and focus while I cast."

[andaisq]

"Yes. Clothes." He retrieves: pants! Pants are a wonderful invention. He also retrieves a shirt, and socks, and shoes, and a leather duster jacket. This last he clutches to himself as though it were his dearest friend. He quickly dons them, since he's dried off about enough to do so. He looks much more comfortable. Not, like, particularly comfortable, he's never particularly comfortable, but he looks less uncomfortable.

[alicornucopia]

"How many more things?" inquires Keo.

[andaisq]

He considers. He hates parting with his focus items, but Molly really does need the blasting rod and the shield bracelet more than he does. And the force rings. He has the duster, at least; it'd never fit anyone else. Advantages to being taller than any human being has a right to be. "Just my staff and a couple of spell components, I guess," he mutters. He would be kicking rocks, were there rocks to kick.

[alicornucopia]

Keo retrieves these for him.

[andaisq]

"So, now to send the letter, I guess? Murphy will want to know what happened as soon as possible."

[alicornucopia]

"Sure. Put it in the other circle, same thing with the hand, concentrate on where you want to put it. It can be just near the recipient if you don't know where they are."

[andaisq]

He nods. "Good, good. I think Murphy would probably be getting ready for bed by now, so it shouldn't be too hard to get it to her." He concentrates, and the letter goes.

[alicornucopia]

Once that's taken care of, Keo says, "So, while you're here, the school is responsible for you. We can give you a pass to the cafeteria and put you in an empty dormitory room and if there's anything you need that it would make more sense to buy than summon I'll have Korulen take you shopping at her own expense."

[andaisq]

He nods again. "Sounds good. It's not like I can raise a tower from the ground or something, so it's nice to have housing options. Homelessness is not fun, by all accounts." He chews a lip, then says, "And I should probably apologize to those girls. They were dumb, but I didn't have to be that mean."

[alicornucopia]

"I don't think you owe them an apology, but you can issue one if you so choose."