I can't fix you, but maybe I can still help

[powerispain]

He's trying to kill us--could ruin him--worry about that later--grab your sister and go.

Comments

[powerispain]

And Odette--cringes, drops a handful of the younger ones, and assumes the pain from the new baby.

[alicornucopia]

The younger ones are annoyed. The new baby is delighted.

The silver comes back with another baby.

[powerispain]

She drops a handful more. Dammit, why can't she be better than this. She grabs the new baby.

[alicornucopia]

The new baby is the worst one. Some of the dropped babies de-swarm in protest.

[powerispain]

Nng she hates having to leave any of them uncovered--and she can't do this overnight--she had better be able to teach this stuff.

[alicornucopia]

"It'll take a while for Ehail to get to the Corenta house," Jensal says when the silver has left again. "Where do we start with seeing if we can learn the magic?"

[powerispain]

"Try--ugh, I don't know any words for it--I wish--no, this is worse. I know a telepathy-thing but it's very brief and it hurts a lot, but it's not as bad as esu, at least not for the older ones, I could try showing you what it's like..."

[alicornucopia]

"You sit through a few years of that," Jensal points at the oldest baby, who is now rolling over and over on the floor, "you don't care much about anything less."

[powerispain]

"I'll try showing you or a different adult what it's like and we can see if you can get anywhere with that before trying it on a kid regardless, of course."

[alicornucopia]

"Try me."

[powerispain]

She doesn't want to have to do it more than once, so she bundles up as much as she can--what it feels like to do assorted exercises in each of the three, especially flight--and pushes.

It feels like a particularly strong impact in Jensal's bones, but still not enough to compare to twenty-year esu.

[alicornucopia]

Jensal doesn't even flinch. Though she does tilt her head curiously and try turning into a bird.

[powerispain]

The faint echoes of pain that lingered after the first sharp shock don't fade any slower as a bird.

[alicornucopia]

She turns back. "Estimated amount of practice necessary to get to the point of anesthetizing babies? I imagine they'll learn better if someone else can hold the pain for them while they're working on it."

[powerispain]

"Um, I could fly three years in...I was doing kind of gratuitous amounts of magic, though. On the other hand the babies are lighter than I was, at the time, and that's most of the work..."

[alicornucopia]

"They're very light. They could even flap, if that helps, just not hard enough."

[powerispain]

"It might. Or--wait, is that the issue? Because putting more strength in your muscles is easy."

[alicornucopia]

"The issue is unclear, but they can move their wings, just not fly with them." (A baby flaps illustratively.)

[powerispain]

"Maybe the muscles thing will work. ...We should see if you can do any magic at all, though. Try lifting something small?"

[alicornucopia]

Jensal finds a small toy and holds it in the palm of her hand and stares it down. Effort seems most natural to her.

[powerispain]

It takes a few seconds to start lifting into the air, but even before that the slight muscle ache lets her know that she's doing something. Odette clasps her hands together in delight. "It worked!"

[alicornucopia]

Jensal smiles, slightly. "Does everyone just pick whichever form they like more, or which seems suited to a task...?"

[powerispain]

"Suited to a task, strongly weighted towards what you've got a resistance to and what you've got a talent for. I can do almost everything I really want to with Sympathy."

[alicornucopia]

"Resistance to?"

[powerispain]

"The mental side effects don't hit everyone exactly the same. Depending on your personality you may be more or less strongly hit by any given side effect."