LilyThere was so much happening, and all at once: discussions of what Renard did or didn't do, whether or not Shun was the right to be so aggressive, and still that undertone of casting the sigil, of setting some kind of intent for the world. Was it really so simple as the power of intent? It couldn't be, not when the others were talking in circles and Lily's head was still pounding.
But if magic was willpower and willpower was what made everything work, then
couldn't it be as simple as believing it so? Intention and willpower were a significant part of her own practice--much more of her work was done in getting her students to trick their minds into believing they could master the poses than any traditional conditioning. So could they just...trick themselves into making the whole world right again? Did the universe listen on that sort of scale? It was mind-boggling to even consider.
As the others talked among themselves, Lily shuffled up beside Temperance, who seemed to be the arbiter of all things blood-magic. "So I hear you're the one to go to if I wanna be part of the blood party," she said, half-smiling the pale of her arm to the armed nurse. She was no stranger to the sight of her blood, watching with mild fascination as it dripped to the sigil below. They were supposed to charge it with thoughts, like the opening of a practice, and so Lily closed her eyes and thought about all of the things that made Ashdown her home, the places and people that had occupied her life since she'd set out on her own.
She thought of Temperance first, sweet but tired Sailor V, who had been even more tired in the timeline she'd seen. And there was Shun, her parkour buddy, and the gym where she'd practiced firsthand with Officer Smiles. She had classes to finish, a degree to earn so that Zac and Nathaniel's efforts wouldn't have been wasted, and beyond that there were the things she'd yet to do, like practice in the rain with Juniper or run away with Preacher and start an action movie franchise like they were the Rock and Vin Diesel. (Preacher had to be Dwayne Johnson in this metaphor--Lily couldn't do that thing with her eyebrows.) She missed Nasir, and she missed Gloom, and then she imagined a scenario with her and Nasir and Gloom having a great time in the otherworld and promptly decided that this was the best idea ever, and put it away on her mental checklist of things to definitely make happen later.
And then Lily remembered the otherworld, Dee, the Faceless, and everything else she'd seen, and her expression melted to something uncomfortable and less certain. The only thought she spared for the place where it rained was that it needed to chill the ******** out.
Lily centered herself and focused, and when she felt for her sense of self she found Pack, her Jamie and Eve and everyone in Ashdown who had been touched by the call of the moon. She recited their names in her mind like a prayer, only to choke when she reached Ashton. They counted as pack, right? But were they...family? Were they even friends anymore? Lily wasn't sure of her footing on the subject, and her thoughts started to spiral away, her pulse rising as she began to fluster--
--and then she breathed in, forced herself to find stillness and peace of mind. There were other times to think about it. She was in the here and now and needed to focus.
Lily thought of the pillars of her world, what she needed it to be and do. For the Mind she thought of Zac, his inspiring wisdom and his depth of knowledge. For the Body she thought of Shun, quick reflexes and power and law and danger all in the same frowny officer. And for the Spirit, she ended where she began, with Temperance, the healer and guardian. And the magic was Sunny and Sunny was magic so she thought of her too, as unbroken as she cared to be, mysterious but benevolent so that whoever sought out the witch on the beach might come back with a good fortune in exchange for a couple of smokes.
She rubbed at her arm and opened her eyes, sealing her intent with a breath.
shibrogane
Trying for principle because why not
Intent: What if we were all just really chill with our magic and got along
Principle Votes: Zac - Mind, Shun - Body, Temperance - Spirit