Day 5

--- Jon ---

While most of the Whitaker family’s ‘training’ could be seen as a bit odd, by most people, what they considered as ‘Trap Making’ was actually fairly mundane in the fact that it was simply a few back and forth pranks between each other.

Something relatively common all things considered.

Well… at least until you considered how serious they take their prank wars.

Fully aware that the only time his ma didn’t wake him for training was when she’d decided it was time to train his ‘Trapping’ skills, he didn’t trust the fact that he was allowed to sleep in at all.

Carefully he lifted up his pillow, before eyeing the knife he kept hidden underneath. Namely the way it was angled wrong.

(Nice try Ma.)

Instead of taking the trapped knife, he grabbed the spare knife he kept hidden between his mattress, the wall, and the bed frame. Taking the blade in hand, he eyed the floor before spotting the set of trip wires rigged in front of his bed. Determining which one was rigged, he grabbed it with an unmoving grip and severed the loose end before crawling out of the way and letting go.

From a small gap in his closet a number of paintballs flew out shooting both where he would’ve been standing, and where he would’ve been sitting on his bed. The loud noise causing Pix to leap out of her sleeping spot in fright wondering what was going on.

Normally he’d comfort her but given how he knew his mother would never settle for just two traps, he decided to postpone his ‘It’s okay.’ hugs until he knew it really was okay. (Just got to find the third trap…)

Slowly his eyes drifted to his door.

The door that -before bringing Pix home- he’d left cracked so he could hear what was going on in the hallway the way his ma taught him.

The door that was still closed despite the fact his ma broke into his room and would’ve wanted to drive home the fact that he should leave it open.

The door that she knew, he’d know, she’d want it opened and thus know it was rigged with a trap, thus allowing her to hide a second trap behind the false security of finding the first.

He eyed the door for another moment before looking out his window. (Wonder if I can make that jump to the fire escape?)

Idly he noted the heavy thump from the other side of the apartment as his ma got caught in the tripwire he’d rigged to the front door when he’d gotten up four hours prior, as well as the faint “Good job kid.” from his ma.

Scene Consequences

-Gained 2XP to Trap Making and 1XP to Awareness.

--Currently: Trap Making Lv. 8 (11/18) and Awareness Lv. 8 (3/18)

---

“Alright, review time again.” He told no body in particular as he picked up one of his notebooks.

Pix took this as her cue to fly off and start tending to the garden they’d set up the day before.

With a huff of amusement, he shook his head and opened his book to a section on actually practicing magic.

“Okay, so magic is both wild and tame. It’s like an animal, a living creature. If you respect her, she’ll aid you in every way she can, but if you cross her, she won’t hesitate to devour you whole.” He read, aloud knowing he had an easier time remembering something he heard than something he read.

“In this way magic operates under a Conceptual system that works by connecting ideas through a mix of thought and reality. Allowing some concepts to take on characteristics that one would not expect them to have as well as ways that make perfect sense if one were to tilt their perception to the side. Due to this some concepts may work in a fashion that is completely unexpected from its most literal sense or unlock doors to concepts far off from their origins.” This part still got him a bit, he understood the basics of his concepts themselves, but he still had a bit of trouble connecting them to other ideas outside of the obvious.

“It should be noted that while all life regardless of their actual ability to use magic possess their own affinities, only a handful of sapient species possess the amount of sheer variance and growth seen in most mystically inclined humans.” That last line still sounded like human pride and arrogance to him, but according to De Sade it was a proven fact that the only species that had humanity’s versatility were the ones that had regular exposure to other parts of the spectrum such as Madness and Malice.

“Which has something to do with how the various energies forced both the human mind and soul to become adaptive or die horrifically, you know, despite the fact that we have human incarnates and the numerous other species on this planet are doing just fine with a focus on magic.” He criticized as his attention drifted towards where Pix was wrapping up with the garden.

He’d be the first to admit that he hadn’t quite understood De Sade’s explanation at the time of the man’s explanation, and -if he was being honest with himself- his garbled notes made that more than abundantly clear to anyone who read them.

With a sigh to himself, he decided it wasn’t worth the headache to try and figure out his notes on that section and instead flipped to an explanation on affinities.

“Okay, so… While it is theoretically possible for most mystically aware people to learn all forms of magic, should they live long enough to do so. This doesn’t change the fact that every person is born with their own affinities towards magic largely based on their personality and the various events in their life, granting them an easier time when handling these conceptual affinities.” He read, all the while wondering, (What happened to me to give Hunter, Defender, and Moon?)

He could understand developing them after everything that happened over the summer, but the fact that he had them before everything fell apart was something he still couldn’t quite wrap his head around. (Almost wonder if the Man in the Mask did something to rig it.)

He wouldn’t put it past the entity in question.

Pix landed on the notebook in his hands and glared at him.

“What’s wrong?”

The little fairy looked at him, then at what he was reading, before pointing at the notebook and sticking her tongue out.

“Okay, if you don’t want me reading this, what would you like to study instead?” He asked tossing his notebook on his desk as the fairy was forced to hover in place. “If you’re finding all of this so boring, I’m sure there must be something you actually want to look into.”

Pix seemed to tap her chin in thought before smiling wide and dashing towards his stack of notebooks, toppling the pile to the side as she began looking for one in particular. (And I’m going to have to clean that up… as usual…)

Eventually the little fairy found what she was looking for as she flipped one of the notebooks open and began flipping past a number of pages containing pictures on one side and written words on the other.

(Wonder what she wants out of my bestiary?) The book itself wasn’t as in depth as the ones Miss Edna or De Sade had given him, and instead was filled with his own personal notes on the various mystical creatures he’d encountered.

He’d been meaning to add some pages for creatures he’d yet to meet but given how weird Blackwell’s mystical biomes could get had spent more time studying how to identify the effects of Bleeds, Rifts, and Domains.

Having finally found whatever creature she was searching for, Pix leapt into the air and pointed at a page containing a fairly good -if he said so himself- drawing of the fairy in question.

(I should of known.) He thought, unable to keep a grin off his face even as he rolled his eyes.

“Alright, let’s see here…” He picked the book up and made a show of reading one of the few entries he had fully memorized. “Fairies are typically a form of nature spirit that loves causing mischief for anyone that enters their territories. And while largely vegetarian, fairies possess a near gluttonous appetite for milk and baked goods. It is thanks to their unique connection with nature that fairies are able to farm and build throughout their chosen environment without rendering any actual harm to it.”

Pix laid on his desk staring at him with rapt attention, (the little narcissist.)

“Fairies being an extremely community-oriented species usually come in four tiers, each representing a different rank in their society.” His eyes drifted towards her with a raised brow, earning a nod from Pix to show he was on the right track.

“Starting with the younger fairies, who from birth are capable of basic nature magic, as well as number of basic mischief and light magics that they spend their days playing with as they begin to develop and mature.” (As if.) Even if she was considered young, that didn’t change the fact that Pix and every other fairy he’d met were extremely immature in their personalities.

“Once a young fairy has gathered a sufficient amount of power they usually begin to specialize in a specific branch of nature magic -such as water, animals, and plants- which eventually grants them a new affinity, determining their role within their society and marking them as fully fledged adults of their species.” He knew Pix was just shy of the requirements to reach this rank due to having developed a specialty for healing, though she still had a bit of room to change that if she wanted to.

“As these fairies continue to gather power they eventually ascend to a class of high fairies, granting them even greater control over their given specialties while also developing the skills and abilities necessary to lead and manage fairies of a lower rank in their given roles.” He continued earning a prideful smile from Pix as he continued to tell the little fairy things she’d taught him.

“Lastly -and possibly most importantly- are Royal Fairies. Those who have achieved a level of magic that allows them to support and protect a large number of other fairies, causing others to flock to them for safety and kinship as they establish a new fairy community. This tier is the most difficult for any fairy to achieve, with only a rare few managing to do so. This tier is also our goal line.” He added with a smile towards Pix as he confirmed he hadn’t forgotten about her goal, or their promise.

Pix beamed at him before rushing forward and wrapping his face in as much of a hug as she could with her little arms.

Scene Consequences

-Thanks to Miss Edna’s Books and Pix’s pressure gained 3XP to Occult.

--*Skill Level Up* Occult Lv. 5 (1/12)

-Grown a bit closer to Pix

-New Epic Quest: Royal Pix: Pix is our partner, she’s helped us accomplish so much, it’s only right that we do the same.

--Note: Epic Quests are long term quests that have no clear cut way of finishing them right now, and as such while they may take a long time to complete, they are a goal to work towards in the long run.

---

Checking in with the neighbors around his building wasn’t too hard, though for the most part few of them were actually worried about the gangs. Largely because that was just a fact of living on the southside, unless someone on the block was hurt the gangs were there and they weren’t leaving anytime soon. (Which is a shame…)

As he stepped onto the roof deck of his apartment, he found three of said neighbors passing around a bottle while their kids played on the other side of the deck.

“Ah, privyet young Whitaker!” The largest and oldest of the three greeted a smile beneath his greying mustache. “How are you doing this fine evening?”

“I’m doing well enough Mr. Petrovitch.” He assured as he walked up to three.

“That’s good kid.” Ms. Valentine -a dark haired woman in her late twenties- nodded back in greeting. “Haven’t seen you around all summer, and your mom’s been at work too much to ask what was going on. Been a bit worried about her.”

“I was doing a CIT thing at this summer camp I went to as a kid.” He explained, before considering the situation with his mother. “And knowing ma she got lonely and decided to double down since I wasn’t there to stop her.”

“Sounds about right.” Mr. Jefferson, a black man in his early thirties agreed before giving him a look. “And summer camp? What’s up with that?”

“I’ve been going there since I was a kid.” He shrugged, more than used to most people thinking of him as the weird ‘campy’ kid. “It’s fun.”

“Uh-huh, well… you do you kid.” Mr. Jefferson told him, obviously disagreeing but too polite to point it out as he took another sip of the bottle.

“Still it’s good you’ve got hobbies or whatever.” Ms. Valentine encouraged waving her cigarette through the air. “This camp any good? If you liked it so much maybe I’ll send my tyke there in a couple of years.”

“Yeah, camp was-” (black blood bled from the eyes as the corrupted struggled beneath him, just out of earshot of the children he was supposed to be watching) “-great…”

“What’s wrong friend?” Mr. Petrovitch asked with concern. “You don’t look like camp was ‘great’.”

“No, uh, the camp was having financial problems.” He admitted, the problem he’d already fixed with a few favors to De Sade. “It wouldn’t hurt to check in a couple of years but…” He shrugged.

“Right.” Ms. Valentine sighed. “Life’s like that a lot these days…”

“Mm-hmm…” Mr. Jefferson agreed.

Sensing the dower mood, the ever-cheerful Mr. Petrovitch clapped his hands together. “Still, was there something you needed Jon?”

“Oh, uh, well, you know how my ma’s a cop? Well, there’s been this thing that the local gangs are acting up, and that they’re probably going to keep doing so for a few more weeks.” He explained remembering just why he was here. “I just figured we should let people know, and that if they need anything to let us know. We’d be happy to help with whatever you guys need.”

“Ah, you’re a good lad Jon.” Mr. Petrovitch praised. “If anything happens I’ll be sure to let your matushka know.”

“Not that it’ll do much good.” Mr. Jefferson sighed. “Gangs are a fact of life in this city, especially when you’re poor like the lot of us.”

“It could be worse.” Ms. Valentine argued before grimacing. “But uh, if any of you see my ex let me know. If the gangs are acting up I don’t want that asshole thinking he can get away with harassing me again.”

“Um, that restraining order ma helped you with went into effect right?” He made sure.

“Yeah, the court day was last month.” Ms. Valentine nodded putting out the last little bit of her cigarette. “Bastard didn’t even show up, so the order went through with your mom vouching for me.”

“That’s good.” (Means I won’t get in too much trouble for breaking his legs if he tries something.)

He frowned at that thought, not liking how violent it was.

(I’m sure we can just talk him into leaving if it’s that or jail.)

“Look out!” One of the kids shouted.

Idly he raised a hand and caught a red rubber ball before throwing it back towards the kids, his eyes never straying from the spot on the deck he was staring at.

“Yeah… if the Whitakers got your back I doubt you have anything to worry about.” Mr. Jefferson told Ms. Valentine, an odd pitch to his voice as all three of the adults stared at him with wide eyes.

He blinked. “Huh… That’s nice of you.”

Scene Consequences

-Grown a bit closer to all neighbors.