[ If there's one thing that sucks about having her know his life story, it's that she also knows that for better or worse, he knows how to teach magecraft. Magecraft specifically tailored even to be usable by girls with middling amounts of mana... and he has a track record of a single successful student who proceeded to then kick his ass years later.
So essentially, he had no good excuse to deny her when she started pestering him about it. Not that he didn't try, considering how he pointed out that when she goes home she likely won't be able to do these things anymore... but such an argument is easily broken down, and oh god did he just make that a lie by saying it? Shit.
Still, as far as students go, it's not like Ai is a bad one. Reinforcement is admittedly a little higher level, but being able to reinforce her own body will help her to better survive if he's otherwise occupied, and understanding the basis of reinforcement should help her with grasping other spells as well. ]
...Visualize the limb in question in your mind while you channel mana into it. Picture the end result, and push your mana through. Like how you used your Mystic Code.
[ Easier said than done, he knows, but being able to visualize the result is a key part of magecraft... and no one knows Ai's body more than herself, so it's the best place to start. Mind, living things naturally resist the invasion of mana, so his comparison to her Mystic Code might be... a bit off, but fundamentally it's the same. At least she's not trying to reinforce someone else. ]
[ Easier said than done indeed. Even with her Mystic Code helping her along, casting through that had taken a while to adjust to. She's not entirely sure she can even do it without that help but... she'll certainly never do it if she refuses to try at all. ]
Well, I can do the first part pretty easy. [ She's joking to cover for her nerves. ] Let's see...
[ Visualising her arm is pretty easy - it's right there, after all - and she tries to remember how the flow of magic had felt through her Mystic Code. She feels a faint spark like a flint and...
[ His eyes watch her closely, watching the way she uses her mana. She's hit the expected pitfall of her body refusing the flow of mana from her circuits and into her body proper. He's not exactly surprised.
He sighs and gets up from his perch, moving to stand behind her and reach over her shoulders, putting his hands on her outstretched arm. ]
Here, watch... no, feel...
[ And now she gets to feel the ever-strange feeling of... his circuits linking with hers? ]
[ Her reaction is immediate - she starts like he's just jabbed her in the side and for a second, her outstretched arm falters. ]
Ah- wh-
[ It's strange. It's uncomfortable. It's a little like the nauseating sensation that follows pins and needles as blood rushes back through your veins. She supposes having mana run through her barely touched circuits isn't much different. ]
[ It is him, and it's hardly a pleasant sensation, but... his hands are gentle as they rest on her skin, and the unpleasant feeling begins to fade... so long as she stays still, at least. ]
Close your eyes, shut everything out... just focus on what you feel.
[ For someone who has only taught a girl magecraft as a talking staff, it doesn't feel like he's inexperienced. ]
[ Relax, he says. Not that she can do that when it feels like her veins are full of static. But she closes her eyes as he says and gradually, the discomfort eases. The pins-and-needles sensation doesn't quite vanish but it does ease into something more tolerable. Like that, Ai can focus on working out the shape of it as it works its way through her blood. ]
It feels...
[ She doesn't know how it feels. Strange. Off putting. Like someone else's muscles sitting under her flesh. ]
[ He keeps it to a minimum to reduce discomfort, but he starts to lightly push mana through into her arm... not enough that it actually succeeds at the reinforcement that she's aiming for, but enough that she should be able to feel the flow get pushed back by her own body. ]
[ Not a bad analogy. Maybe she does have some hope at this whole magecraft thing. Granted, being able to conceptualize it is one thing, but going against that is another. You're normally not supposed to push your hand the wrong way, after all. ]
Now don't let that stop you. Magecraft is all about being stubborn, after all...
[ Bit of an oversimplification there, but that doesn't really make him wrong, huh...? He starts to assist her, guiding her own mana rather than pushing his through her. ]
[ Stubborn. The word settles strangely in her brain for some reason, like an ill fitting pair of shoes she's been asked to break in. She's never thought of herself as the stubborn type before but for some reason, she likes it when Oberon says it. And she supposes it would make sense for him to think of her like that - she's been greedy and tunnelvisioned since the moment they met, after all. And it takes a certain stubbornness to deal with a Servant like him.
So she follows his lead. She breathes out slowly and in her mind, the exhale is flecked with specks of light. She lets herself imagine her mana like that, too - writhing liquid stardust trapped in her veins, desperate to flow. Her body resists but she pushes, like stretching a stiff muscle until it finally learns to give again. And something does, sharply enough to make her pull in a pained breath.
[ He grins. She's not perfect and she makes mistakes frequently, but she's not as bad at this as she thinks. He gently disconnects and instead grips her arm with his hand and squeezes. It's still not perfect... in fact, it probably wouldn't hold up to anything dangerous quite yet, but... ]
Congratulations, Ai. You've taken your first baby step.
[ Well, by actual mage standards, that's a lie... but actual mages tend to be assholes anyway, so this is an alright lie to tell. ]
[ When her eyes flutter open, she expects to find her arm... visibly changed somehow. Wearing the sheen of the stardust she'd let herself imagine was running through it. But it looks just the same as it ever did and a weird mix of disappointment and relief passes through her. But... if she's honest, mostly relief. ]
I... really did it...
[ She gently tugs her hand from his grip and draws it close to her face so she can stare into her palm. Something feels different, different enough for her to tell that she's really managed it.
A slightly unsteady smile wobbles onto her face - and then she whirls around on him, absolutely beaming. ]
Eheheh! See, I can do it too if I put my mind to it? Hm, would you say I'm a genius, a prodigy or a genius prodigy already?
[ She's clearly gassing herself up just as a joke, but the relief and pride in her eyes is true if nothing else. ]
[ God, she might be joking, but how dare she have such a contagious smile. Still, he manages to hide it well enough under his usual smug attitude. ]
Yes, yes. A genius idol and a genius mage, you must have it all, don't you?
[ Still, it's a good first step. If she can channel even a little mana through herself, then she can manage inanimate objects. Beware, world... Ai Hoshino is going to learn how to make magecraft bombs. He briefly wonders if Artoria would get jealous... though then again, even if she did get jealous, he wouldn't really care. ]
[ He's lying, of course - she'd know that for a fact even if he had any other choice. She's taken her first tottering steps into a world she barely understands and nothing more... but still. It doesn't feel bad to be praised, even if it's having to come in the form of a barely there, backhanded compliment. ]
This is the part where you're supposed to give me a grade, you know. What do you think? An A for effort and a D for actual results?
[ He reaches out and puts his hand on her head, still grinning as smugly as ever. ]
Maybe… if I were your typical teacher. Practice what you just did regularly until you can do it effortlessly. In the meantime, I suppose the question now… is what you want to learn next.
[ He swears, if she says something like “flying”, he’s going to kill Artoria… for an influence that she wasn’t even here to impart onto Ai. ]
Hmm, maybe I'll bring a broomstick up here. [ She ducks out from under his hand and twirls, arms out, dancing across the roof. ] And you can teach me how to fly.
[ She's kidding, of course. But she twirls across the roof and finally slows to a stop. ]
Hmm... But that's not super useful. So maybe...
[ She's facing away from him how and the wind catches her hair for a moment. ]
Oh yeah? You wanna be a witch now? Well, sorry, but that particular expertise is out of my capabilities. You can learn how to fly when you grow wings, though!
[ Said as if his wings aren't just decorative and useless in regards to flight. Still, he looks up just as she twirls and the wind catches her hair.
God, she's so effortlessly beautiful it must be unfair. ]
...What, you don't want me to do it anymore?
[ He says it jokingly, but he did a really bad job of hiding how he was staring and admiring her for a moment. ]
Hmm. Maybe I just don't trust you to do it responsibly.
[ he didn't think she'd forgotten what he did last time, did he
Or, well. That's what she says, in a light enough tone to sound like a joke but she's still facing away from him. One of her hands has slid around to the front of her torso and even without being able to see it, it's easy to guess she's gripping that particular spot of her dress again. ]
I just thought it'd be useful if I could do it too. Not just for me, but Aqua and Ruby, too. Wouldn't I be a total supermom if I could make all their scuffs and bruises just go away like that? Ahaha!
[ It's pretty and well rehearsed but her laugh is mirthless. ]
Whaaaaat? Come on, you can trust me to do it right~
[ Which means she 100% cannot trust him to do it responsibly. Granted, he didn't need to say it for her to know that already. In his defense, though, they're both just as bad at keeping their hands to themselves.
He watches her hand grip that spot and his grin briefly fades. Well, it's not like she's wrong... in regards to both her lie and the truth, that is. His usual grin returns, and he allows her to keep that lie up. ]
I suppose you would! Maybe I should only teach you how to heal with a kiss, then? That is what you human Mothers do when your child gets hurt, isn't it?
[ As if he'd go through the trouble. He'd have to learn that particular method himself before he imparts it onto Ai, and that's definitely never happening. ]
[ Another laugh. Still not quite real, but a little less forced at least. ]
Oh, wouldn't that be super cute? But... I think you're pretty much the last person I'd trust to teach me something like that. And I don't want to kiss anybody but you, so that's kind of a bust.
[ She turns back to face him properly, her smile a little more sober - and when she steps in towards him, the hand that'd been clutching the front of her dress drifts up to gently touch his face. ]
With the Mystic Code, all I had to do was... but I guess it wouldn't work right now anyway. There's nothing to heal, huh?
[ He tries not to let it show how much his heart flutters hearing her say that. Ugh, it's embarrassing even when he manages to hide it...
Not that he manages to hide it once Ai reaches up to put her hand on his face. Ugh, she's way too goddamn charming, are we sure that isn't her real magecraft talent? Charms? Actually that might be worth thinking about... ]
Ai...
[ ...and then it hits him. THere's nothing to heal, huh?
Honestly, the fact that she's oblivious to her own implications makes it even better somehow. His clawed hand comes up to grip hers as his grin widens. ]
...I could change that, you know.
[ Woman, please stop tempting him every single thread... ]
[ A playful click of his tongue followed by the immediate punishment of her fingers pinching his cheek... all is right with the world, clearly. He brushes away her hand before she can turn his cheek too red, though, and grins. ]
What? If you set yourself up so obviously, what am I supposed to do? Not take the opportunity?
[ Flawless logic... for the worst guy ever, sure. ]
And you act like you're surprised when I don't trust you to control yourself...
[ She gives his cheek a poke... For all her talk of how much she does or doesn't trust him, she's gotten pretty comfortably fearless all the same. Definitely too fearless for such an easily terrorised little prey animal but that ease is itself a sort of trust, isn't it? ]
I was going to see about giving you a little reward if you turned out to be a good enough teacher today but now I'm thinking I shouldn't bother.
[ With how often this bunny gets devoured nowadays, it's only natural that she'd grow some backbone, right? Not that it saves her from being devoured at all. ]
Aww, I'm not a good teacher? I'm hurt.
[ He catches her hand in her own and brings it to his lips, kissing her hand and quickly retreating before she can pull his cheek again. ]
Alright, alright... whatever you say, Ai. Healing, is it? Fine. Listen up, then...
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no subject
So essentially, he had no good excuse to deny her when she started pestering him about it. Not that he didn't try, considering how he pointed out that when she goes home she likely won't be able to do these things anymore... but such an argument is easily broken down, and oh god did he just make that a lie by saying it? Shit.
Still, as far as students go, it's not like Ai is a bad one. Reinforcement is admittedly a little higher level, but being able to reinforce her own body will help her to better survive if he's otherwise occupied, and understanding the basis of reinforcement should help her with grasping other spells as well. ]
...Visualize the limb in question in your mind while you channel mana into it. Picture the end result, and push your mana through. Like how you used your Mystic Code.
[ Easier said than done, he knows, but being able to visualize the result is a key part of magecraft... and no one knows Ai's body more than herself, so it's the best place to start. Mind, living things naturally resist the invasion of mana, so his comparison to her Mystic Code might be... a bit off, but fundamentally it's the same. At least she's not trying to reinforce someone else. ]
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Well, I can do the first part pretty easy. [ She's joking to cover for her nerves. ] Let's see...
[ Visualising her arm is pretty easy - it's right there, after all - and she tries to remember how the flow of magic had felt through her Mystic Code. She feels a faint spark like a flint and...
...
...
Nothing happens. ]
... Is it... the wrong arm...?
[ help ]
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[ His eyes watch her closely, watching the way she uses her mana. She's hit the expected pitfall of her body refusing the flow of mana from her circuits and into her body proper. He's not exactly surprised.
He sighs and gets up from his perch, moving to stand behind her and reach over her shoulders, putting his hands on her outstretched arm. ]
Here, watch... no, feel...
[ And now she gets to feel the ever-strange feeling of... his circuits linking with hers? ]
no subject
Ah- wh-
[ It's strange. It's uncomfortable. It's a little like the nauseating sensation that follows pins and needles as blood rushes back through your veins. She supposes having mana run through her barely touched circuits isn't much different. ]
I-is that... you?
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[ It is him, and it's hardly a pleasant sensation, but... his hands are gentle as they rest on her skin, and the unpleasant feeling begins to fade... so long as she stays still, at least. ]
Close your eyes, shut everything out... just focus on what you feel.
[ For someone who has only taught a girl magecraft as a talking staff, it doesn't feel like he's inexperienced. ]
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It feels...
[ She doesn't know how it feels. Strange. Off putting. Like someone else's muscles sitting under her flesh. ]
... like something's there. I think.
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[ He keeps it to a minimum to reduce discomfort, but he starts to lightly push mana through into her arm... not enough that it actually succeeds at the reinforcement that she's aiming for, but enough that she should be able to feel the flow get pushed back by her own body. ]
Do you feel it?
[ Like trying to push something uphill... ]
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I do. It's sort of like...
[ Her fingers spread out and flex a little before relaxing. ]
Like you're trying to push my hand back the wrong way... but it won't let you. My whole body's pushing you back.
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[ Not a bad analogy. Maybe she does have some hope at this whole magecraft thing. Granted, being able to conceptualize it is one thing, but going against that is another. You're normally not supposed to push your hand the wrong way, after all. ]
Now don't let that stop you. Magecraft is all about being stubborn, after all...
[ Bit of an oversimplification there, but that doesn't really make him wrong, huh...? He starts to assist her, guiding her own mana rather than pushing his through her. ]
no subject
So she follows his lead. She breathes out slowly and in her mind, the exhale is flecked with specks of light. She lets herself imagine her mana like that, too - writhing liquid stardust trapped in her veins, desperate to flow. Her body resists but she pushes, like stretching a stiff muscle until it finally learns to give again. And something does, sharply enough to make her pull in a pained breath.
Against all odds, her mana flows. ]
It... it's like that... isn't it?
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Congratulations, Ai. You've taken your first baby step.
[ Well, by actual mage standards, that's a lie... but actual mages tend to be assholes anyway, so this is an alright lie to tell. ]
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I... really did it...
[ She gently tugs her hand from his grip and draws it close to her face so she can stare into her palm. Something feels different, different enough for her to tell that she's really managed it.
A slightly unsteady smile wobbles onto her face - and then she whirls around on him, absolutely beaming. ]
Eheheh! See, I can do it too if I put my mind to it? Hm, would you say I'm a genius, a prodigy or a genius prodigy already?
[ She's clearly gassing herself up just as a joke, but the relief and pride in her eyes is true if nothing else. ]
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Yes, yes. A genius idol and a genius mage, you must have it all, don't you?
[ Still, it's a good first step. If she can channel even a little mana through herself, then she can manage inanimate objects. Beware, world... Ai Hoshino is going to learn how to make magecraft bombs. He briefly wonders if Artoria would get jealous... though then again, even if she did get jealous, he wouldn't really care. ]
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[ He's lying, of course - she'd know that for a fact even if he had any other choice. She's taken her first tottering steps into a world she barely understands and nothing more... but still. It doesn't feel bad to be praised, even if it's having to come in the form of a barely there, backhanded compliment. ]
This is the part where you're supposed to give me a grade, you know. What do you think? An A for effort and a D for actual results?
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Maybe… if I were your typical teacher. Practice what you just did regularly until you can do it effortlessly. In the meantime, I suppose the question now… is what you want to learn next.
[ He swears, if she says something like “flying”, he’s going to kill Artoria… for an influence that she wasn’t even here to impart onto Ai. ]
no subject
Hmm, maybe I'll bring a broomstick up here. [ She ducks out from under his hand and twirls, arms out, dancing across the roof. ] And you can teach me how to fly.
[ She's kidding, of course. But she twirls across the roof and finally slows to a stop. ]
Hmm... But that's not super useful. So maybe...
[ She's facing away from him how and the wind catches her hair for a moment. ]
Maybe healing?
[ Her voice is a little too casual to believe. ]
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[ Said as if his wings aren't just decorative and useless in regards to flight. Still, he looks up just as she twirls and the wind catches her hair.
God, she's so effortlessly beautiful it must be unfair. ]
...What, you don't want me to do it anymore?
[ He says it jokingly, but he did a really bad job of hiding how he was staring and admiring her for a moment. ]
no subject
[ he didn't think she'd forgotten what he did last time, did he
Or, well. That's what she says, in a light enough tone to sound like a joke but she's still facing away from him. One of her hands has slid around to the front of her torso and even without being able to see it, it's easy to guess she's gripping that particular spot of her dress again. ]
I just thought it'd be useful if I could do it too. Not just for me, but Aqua and Ruby, too. Wouldn't I be a total supermom if I could make all their scuffs and bruises just go away like that? Ahaha!
[ It's pretty and well rehearsed but her laugh is mirthless. ]
no subject
[ Which means she 100% cannot trust him to do it responsibly. Granted, he didn't need to say it for her to know that already. In his defense, though, they're both just as bad at keeping their hands to themselves.
He watches her hand grip that spot and his grin briefly fades. Well, it's not like she's wrong... in regards to both her lie and the truth, that is. His usual grin returns, and he allows her to keep that lie up. ]
I suppose you would! Maybe I should only teach you how to heal with a kiss, then? That is what you human Mothers do when your child gets hurt, isn't it?
[ As if he'd go through the trouble. He'd have to learn that particular method himself before he imparts it onto Ai, and that's definitely never happening. ]
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Oh, wouldn't that be super cute? But... I think you're pretty much the last person I'd trust to teach me something like that. And I don't want to kiss anybody but you, so that's kind of a bust.
[ She turns back to face him properly, her smile a little more sober - and when she steps in towards him, the hand that'd been clutching the front of her dress drifts up to gently touch his face. ]
With the Mystic Code, all I had to do was... but I guess it wouldn't work right now anyway. There's nothing to heal, huh?
no subject
Not that he manages to hide it once Ai reaches up to put her hand on his face. Ugh, she's way too goddamn charming, are we sure that isn't her real magecraft talent? Charms? Actually that might be worth thinking about... ]
Ai...
[ ...and then it hits him. THere's nothing to heal, huh?
Honestly, the fact that she's oblivious to her own implications makes it even better somehow. His clawed hand comes up to grip hers as his grin widens. ]
...I could change that, you know.
[ Woman, please stop tempting him every single thread... ]
no subject
Nope. No way. Sorry, but we came up here to get something productive done for once. And before you say it -
[ The hand at his cheek turns into a pinch. ]
No, a "mana transfer" wouldn't be productive right now. Nice try, though.
[ see, she's learning...! Not enough to not set herself up like that in the first place but still. ]
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[ A playful click of his tongue followed by the immediate punishment of her fingers pinching his cheek... all is right with the world, clearly. He brushes away her hand before she can turn his cheek too red, though, and grins. ]
What? If you set yourself up so obviously, what am I supposed to do? Not take the opportunity?
[ Flawless logic... for the worst guy ever, sure. ]
no subject
[ She gives his cheek a poke... For all her talk of how much she does or doesn't trust him, she's gotten pretty comfortably fearless all the same. Definitely too fearless for such an easily terrorised little prey animal but that ease is itself a sort of trust, isn't it? ]
I was going to see about giving you a little reward if you turned out to be a good enough teacher today but now I'm thinking I shouldn't bother.
no subject
Aww, I'm not a good teacher? I'm hurt.
[ He catches her hand in her own and brings it to his lips, kissing her hand and quickly retreating before she can pull his cheek again. ]
Alright, alright... whatever you say, Ai. Healing, is it? Fine. Listen up, then...
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