[CURRENT] Renewal

[lizbot]

The hair was offered with a steady hand and a confident smile, America certain in what she was doing. Every reason Odal gave to leave made her more and more so. She offered her power with simple ease and faith, even if that that attitude had made her so easy a mark for Ezra...for the Burning Man who'd riding him like a suit. There were a lot of reasons to not trust someone with magic, but none of them were good enough to waver here.

Intention and honesty were just how America chose to her life her life, and magic no different. The Court and Charter no different. Even if some of the things she felt and opinions she held about it were a bit hurtful to friends, if it was the truth, she was going to have it out. Fortunately, they seemed to understand and the desire to change things for the better was spread throughout Ashdown's group of Visitors. The direction things were taking were a culmination of shared intent, and it was one which America trusted, just as much as she trusted herself. She trusted the others not to bring their doubts and ill intents into this and that, in turn, dispelled any she might have held herself.

But anxious and apprehensive? Nah. That was for a different girl, and one she chose not to be, even if she'd have been welcomed here. America was here to work and get things done, and her confidence and trust in what they were doing shone out like a beacon through ever bit of posture and expression. They were going to do this and they were going to do this the right way. They were going to replace the Charter and fix it with something better. It didn't need to be perfect. It just needed to be better and treat people better and then those people could in turn, grow. They could grow into people who could create an even better or find a better alternative and replace the work done today.

The Court will be a place to grow with and support one another. She didn't doubt this in the least and she would give as much of her power as needed to make it happen. After the collection, America carefully walked the lines to the center, preparing her mind for the binding, back straight and movements without hesitation.  

[saedusk]

I've never done anything even remotely like this before, was what Eli thought, another accidental projection that would thankfully reach only Horace and Oliver. I hope I do it right. Was there even a right way to do it? Something told him no. Right, probably not, but most efficient, most useful, most likely to achieve the goals they were here to achieve...? That, Eli could believe.

Still, he had no idea what any of those most-ways were. The only thing he had to rely on was his own thoughts. There weren't many people here he knew, but the few he did, he knew he could trust. He believed in them and that's where he focused.

I'm consenting to this whole charter business, he thought to privately to himself, I'm giving up this little piece of hair and I'm doing it because I want to do right by the people who matter the most. And everyone else, everyone else was in there too, but this was Elliot Labelle and those people took a backseat. Still in the car, just not riding shotgun.

With a piece of hair freed from his head, he handed it over when prompted. Seemed easy enough. I'm not exactly the best guy around, he admitted to no one, but I've been trying, so hey, magic? Can you not take my offer for granted, hm? Let's make this thing work, alright?

Even if Eli didn't understand the full depth and gravity of this situation, he could at least be serious about it. Mostly serious. He could be honest and take responsibility for his actions, at least, because he wanted a better, safer system for people like Oliver and Horace.  

[AMItotic]

Lily did not so much rest as she did pass the ******** out, her journey to a room blurred by pain and the residual mental stress from the fight against the Burning Man. She slept like the dead and felt like it afterwards, but at least when she woke it was in a bed with soft sheets and the smell of breakfast in the air. Most of her wounds had been tended to, salved and magically healed, and when she stretched her way out of bed she found that all her limbs were still functional, wiggling her fingers and toes. However, as she crossed the space of a small vanity mirror above the gilded dresser space, she realized that her hair had not been so lucky--it draped over her head in jagged variations of a bob, singed and flat but at least no longer smoky. There were some clothes provided, but Lily spent the extra few minutes to conjure something in black. It was all for naught as she entered the casting space and was handed something in white.

Once she had fully changed, she joined the others on the floor, looking only mildly nonplussed. She pricked her finger and held it out, watching the blood bubble and then drip. "I revoke my consent from the workings of the Burning Man and his document," she stated, no fluff or frills. She did not watch as the blood began to frost over, nor did she wince when the magic welled up and flashed around them, causing the grounds to shake. Instead, she watched with mild interest as the fetch did his work, taking particular note when he used the pine cone. It smelled like ice rinks and fresh grass and powder to her, a strange combination to experience with the warmth of a flame but nevertheless familiar to her.

"Not sure I've got much left to give," Lily shrugged, tugging out a few of the longer hairs from the top of her head for the Mercers. Using hair instead of blood seemed so simple, so efficient, that she had to wonder why no one in all their infinite wisdom had considered it before. She handed over her offering with a wordless nod, then centered her breathing, thinking about her own intent for the charter like they'd done the last time the world had been made new. The first run had been a spontaneous cast, a shot in the dark, but this time Lily had given some time to mull it over, to distill everything she wanted into a single intent. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes.

With this, I give consent to be part of the workings of the new charter, and let it be better than the old. It didn't seem like too tall an order, but she tried not to focus on that lest the magic assume she was sassing it.  

[Smerdle]

Rabbit slowly grew jittery, but it was not apprehension that made him that way. Once things got going and one of the items on the floor was no longer partially his, he became more and more certain that he could feel the magic that sped through the air here, all of the connections between her and him and him and that other guy. The last time he had checked, he'd certainly had no ability to decipher things like that. There had been that box in the Mercers' library that his mind had tried to dismantle, and he felt a pull like that too, coming from the floor, but these other threads of power distracted from it, all talking at once in different languages at different volumes.

Passing a curl of hair off to a Mercer, Rabbit folded his hands, squeezed his eyes shut, and tried to slow his racing heart.

I give my consent for this new working.

I know that what we're cooking here today might one day go as wrong as the charter we're breaking and I hope that future me handles things better than I did. At least he won't have to give up any blood to get out of it. Hopefully. I mean, future Father might still demand blood, I don't know.

Please don't be stupid, future me.

Anyway, I don't think you're even going to have the chance to be stupid because we've got plans and they're much better than the old ones. I'm confident. This is going to work.

He opened his eyes again, just long enough for them to settle on the box on the pedestal.

I can't believe someone cut off Melany's arm.  

[demon_pachabel]

We do not run.

Cassandra was very used to running. It was perhaps the one fearful act in a life she'd built up around a facade of bravery - one that had landed her where she stood now. Stood with familiar comfort and known company, watching as the elements gathered played their roles: torrents, flames, rumbles.....but all much calmer, in a way, than the uncertainty of the day before.

She watched as each new item was presented, her eyes lingering on the incensor. Hopefully she had fixed her own errors enough to let it do its job. Jeremiah had assured her in the short term, but it was only as the sound of bees and whirling winds seemed to fill the area, blowing her hair slightly, that the assurance of what it was finally settled. It was something that would mean something. Something she had been a part of that would mean something.

Consent. Hair as consent. It sounded like a recipe for a voodoo doll, but Jeremiah would have at least used it for good. Not that she expected it to stay in his hands for long. Still, it wasn't as though it would hurt. Anybody with thick hair would suffer from the same affliction - all it took was for her to run her fingers through her hair to innocently pull out some with no pain whatsoever. She gently twisted them together, then gave them to the man she'd called dad.

Then she offered Jeremiah a smile.

I consent to become part of something better. what was better? Perhaps something where as now, she no longer considered herself to be 'grunt labor'. She wanted a seat at the big kid's table and not just by showing up after the fact.  

[Smerdle]

He continued to watch, fighting to hold still as his power was stolen from him. Chester might have screamed and run frantic from the casting had the feeling not been so brief, had it not been followed by a backlash that pinned him in place, burying him under a pile of rocks at the bottom of the sea.

He resurfaced to the scent of fresh linens and paper, the odd smell of warmth that comes from leaving a flashlight on for too long under the covers. He was safe. He was renewed. He was ready to begin.

There had been a time when he wouldn't have given up any of his hair for fear that it would never grow back, but now Chester pulled a few from the back of his head without thinking about it at all, handing them to Jeremiah after Preacher gave him hers. He felt a part of something, despite his desire to remain separate, undifferentiated. Going forward things would be better for everyone because of what they did on this day.

Chester closed his eyes.

I most definitely take responsibility for what will happen here today. I trust those around me to put safeguards in place that will prevent something like what happened yesterday from ever happening again, and not just the incident we dealt with, but everything that led to that point. We must think of the future. There will be a future.

I, Chester Poole, offer my power to bind this creation. May it serve the magical world well.  

[shibrogane]

Kaleb, Leila, and America began their work: they pulled from the offered magic and spun it into a thread, each hair blending into another until there was a long, fine, single strand of it, each piece representing the consent and the hopes of those who had offered them. The magic, too, spun together, until each participant could not tell where they ended and the others around the circle began. Each heart beat to the same rhythm, the slow roll of the magic rising, the tide beneath the full moon. And as Kaleb gathered each thread, as Leila spun them together, and America wrapped the box that Shun and Nasir and Wil had crafted, they all drew breath as one, felt the blood rushing through their own veins as one, a glorious plurality of hope and the knowledge of coming rebirth.

And as they spun those threads, the one participant who was not casting lifted his voice. Odal said, "Now, speak your minds. Say aloud what it is you want, as fully as you can. Shall there still be differentiation?"

He paused for the answers, and received a thundering yes from each participant.

"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?"

He paused, and received a more scattered answer, one that caused him to frown. The magic wavered at this dissonance, but the three at the center continued their spinning, their weaving, and it strengthened again.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?"

He paused, and at their yes, the magic became stronger, steadier.

"Shall the noble geas be destroyed?"

Another muddled answer, another wavering.

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?"

Another yes, brightening the long strand of hair-fine magic again.

"Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

Yes.

"Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

Yes.

"Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

Yes.

"And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?"

Yes.

"Will you swear to create a pathway for those who wish to return to the life of a nonmagical human?"

Yes.

"Use this time now to offer your own thoughts and wishes," he says, and he walks carefully along the lines to the center of the room where America and Kaleb and Leila stand. Odal reaches out and puts his hands over America's, pausing her in her work. "Tie it off," he says, his voice quiet for the first time, his words meant only for America. "You are the tie that binds, Warg Jones, and once you clip this thread that will be the end of this casting. Do this with kavanagh, with intent, and know that what you have worked here today is good."

[AND THAT IS IT. Please post a 250+ word response to the questions Odal has posed. From here, you may begin post-meta RP, etc; once the magic has settled in (read: Shep gets all the new info threads written up) there will be a final follow-up thread to introduce everyone to the new Court. But this is the end of the concurrent meta. The official end date ICly is June 18th, shortly after dusk.

Please do not post your character leaving the circle. you may, however, create threads in the main forum which occur after your character leaves the circle but before they leave the second or third-floor ritual space to go back to Ashdown.]  

[Blade Kuroda]

Shun watched and listened as the new charter steadily came together. As the thread wove around the box, he could feel something flowing through him. It wasn't just magic, but something greater. It was enough to give him some hope that they really were forging a new beginning with all of this. This time, his consent and magic wouldn't be used for something twisted and ******** up.

He drew in a deep breath as Odal requested they all speak their intentions out loud. So be it. He uttered everything quietly.

"Shall there still be differentiation?"

"I see nothing wrong with keeping differentiation."

"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?"

"As long as there is a means to keep it from causing the troubles of the past. Perhaps making it a thing that must be earned."

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?"

"Perhaps as a place for all."

"Shall the noble geas be destroyed?"

"In its current form, yes. Re purpose it to be something along the lines of a court summons."

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?"

"If a noble no longer wishes to serve, or is no longer mentally sound to continue forth, let them leave. Just ensure their knowledge may be passed on in some way, shape, or form."

"Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"...Yes."

He saw nothing particularly wrong with that. And for the rest of the questions, he had nothing more to really add.

"Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"Yes."

"Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"Yes."

"And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?"

He assumed he meant the fetches.

"yes."

"Will you swear to create a pathway for those who wish to return to the life of a nonmagical human?"

"Yes."

With the magical questionnaire done with, he closed his eyes and kept the rest of the thoughts to himself. His intentions were still there. Perhaps with this, there was hope for a new beginning. Perhaps from here on, the means to accomplish their goals at the very end will not be so extreme or dire. He would still be willing to do whatever it took to achieve that end, but he certainly was not going to complain if it required fewer sacrifices.

It most likely was going to be up to all of them in the end.  

[Daekie]

They closed their eyes, to focus more easily; hands clasped in front of them, feet perfectly aligned over the filled-in groove of the floor. When Odal's voice reached Alexis' ears, they spoke quietly in return; and imagined, and thought, and almost-believed for a second they felt the magic again. But it was just everyone's blood moving as one, after all, and it was what-they-wanted but not on the selfishly personal level.

"Shall there still be differentiation?"
"Yes." That call-and-response was easy enough. The differentiation and labels gave people an identity.

Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?"
"Bring the power back. It shouldn't have been cut off in the first place." Again, relatively easy.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?"
"Yes." They had feelings about these walls, feelings they couldn't put into words, not like this and not without forethought.

"Shall the noble geas be destroyed?"
"No," Alexis snarled, "it's a punishment and should stay that way." They thought of pale fingers on their own, pulling backwards, twisting; ********, if Alois had been able to use the geas on them - if they'd known it to use it on him - it would have hurt less.

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?"
"Yes." And for every answer after that - yes, yes, yes, in time with everyone around, the voices layering in the way a partially-organized crowd was wont to do without any rehearsal. (They twisted their fingers together in time and thought they could feel the magic beneath their feet, rushing through the air, twisting and linking and binding. Theirs, in part. They'd helped. They'd done their part. They had managed - something.)

At the impetus to offer their own wishes, Alexis' voice went quiet, clear. "Nobody should lose their magic unwillingly. Nobody." That one had threatened to burst out of their throat if they didn't give it words.

Quieter, quieter, quieter still, so quiet they could barely hear themself; "I want my life back. I'm so tired of being stared at for what I didn't do and they'll never understand."  

[azuredreams]

The feel of the magic was something else all together. It was the feeling that Jeremiah had hoped to find once more, the wonder of magic. The goodness of it and this was it.

As everyone breathed in time and their hearts thumped in unison, as the magic - their consent - was wrapped and tethered to the box and strengthening it.

Odal's questions were heard, the voices of others echoing even as he spoke his own responses.

"Shall there still be differentiation?" Yes. Differentiation brought balance and created opportunities for those who do not know where to go with the magic they've been given.

"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?" Let it be a path that can be afforded to those seers and moonwalkers who are capable. It was the only way, he thought, that would see things become further balanced. If there was a force that could be seen as equal to the nobility.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?" Yes. The Court should stay. It is a space in which the Nobles are able to attend to the matters of this world but let there be spaces for others. Jeremiah thought, perhaps, of creating their own space. Of the space in which he would help other beings and visitors alike in finding their way within this world and the other.

"Should the noble geas be destroyed." Only if there is another way. Only if we can try those who have gone wrong. A court system, perhaps, a way for truth to be told no matter what. Jeremiah had his own powers to do so but was that enough? Atrocities had to be stopped.

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?" Let the nobles only serve if they are capable, if they are not, then see them return to the cycle of rebirth. Jeremiah had no doubts here, that this is what it needed to be. If too many years of life ruined them, if the magic corroded who they were, then they were no longer fit to be nobles.

"Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?" Yes. No more kidnappings, no more omission, no more abuse. Let new nobles become such through a contract, that they know what they are going to become and that they shall serve and be responsible for both worlds. His thoughts turned briefly towards his own ideals, that which he wanted to see passed on as a Noble. After all, he was considering bringing someone into the Nobility and how that would go remained to be seen after all was said and done.

"Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?" Yes.

"Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?" Yes. Though he wished for the bonded familiars to live longer, to not die so soon and not cause undo mental stress to their warg bonded.

"And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?" Yes, the fetches are to be protected and safeguarded. Enabled to have their spaces and continue on as they wish to do. Let no harm come to hem.

"Will you swear to create a pathway to those who wish to return to life of a nonmagical human?" Yes, if a fetch wishes to return to life, then let them have it. Let there be a way. Put an end to the battles for life at the cost of another's.

Jeremiah was resolute, his will and intent as strong as it was siphoned towards the box. A glance went to Algie, a small smile given, because this was - after all - what they had worked for and this would hopefully set the stage for a better tomorrow. A day in which they could continue working towards the end of the cage and the cycles.

They just had be ready to face what came next.  

[iloveyouDIE]

Alg had never until this moment felt as if they had all been in this together. The magic heartbeat pulsing between them all gave an overwhelming sense of unity and while he knew inevitably that it would fade, the professor surrendered himself and offered himself to it as long as it lasted.

Odal's voice rung clear beyond the rhythm of the magic.

"Shall there still be differentiation?" Yes. For balance and for retention of what they'd all worked so hard for.

"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?" Let it be a goal to be reached, a mastery of their magic.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?" Yes. Let the nobles have their space, but let the court not be closed to others.

"Should the noble geas be destroyed." Yes.

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?" A noble should be allowed to serve as long as they are able and sane. Let instead have them step down, or be removed, if their position is abused.

The string of Yes's continued. Alg was very much for consent and preparation for all. No differentiation should ever be forced, every position and job should only be taken for those who wanted them. No abuse, infection or any spontaneous force to put anyone in a position they didn't want. Every fetch had the right to a life and if that be service, let it be so, if not do not bridle them. Should anyone want to reclaim a human life? Let them, so long as they earn it.

They had all worked so hard, so long, and endured so much for this. Alg's eyes went to his husband, meeting his glance and smiling small as well. This would be the new world they'd hoped for. The future wasn't definite but they were certainly on the right track.  

[demon_pachabel]

Oh boy. Time to answer a lot of questions that while Cass tangentially understood most of it, was hoping to not sound like an idiot about any of it. How would her answers fall with others? Would she be the odd voice out. She took a deep breath as the thread of hair began to form, strengthened by the resolve of those who were still there in that circle.

"Shall there still be differentiation?"

"Yes. It is only through diversifying that we can strengthen ourselves."


"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?"

Cassandra didn't know what the spirit-bond was, but it seemed those more knowing had words about that one. She'd allow them to answer - if only perhaps on their own behalves.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?"

"Yes. As long as it has meaningful purpose. As long as it isn't an exclusive club."

"Shall the noble geas be destroyed?"

Oh. this one she knew. "Only destroyed to implement something new - something better. Something that people don't cheat their ways around."

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?"

"Yes - as long as they are able." It sounded as though many others agreed on it.

"Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"This is the only way we will have nobles that will do what they are meant to. Yes."

"Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"Of course. Second verse, same as the first."

"Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?"

"Again, same as before. Yes."

"And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?"

Were these the Fetches? "Yes."

"Will you swear to create a pathway for those who wish to return to the life of a nonmagical human?"

"Yes."

Was this all it had taken? It felt so....easy. Was it really this easy? Cass glanced towards Jeremiah and Algie, as if their faces would help give her direction, before looking around the rest of the circle - where Marcus wasn't. She really would have liked to see him there, even if she had a feeling she already knew his answers.

But they meant nothing thought into a void.  

[iloveyouDIE]

Wil's awe didn't end, instead it grew with each second of the casting. He hadn't expected to see so many familiar faces performing such amazing magic. He was also thrilled to see their box, the hard work they'd done, and glanced to both Shun and Nasir with a smile. He wanted to reach for his boyfriend and take his hand but was nervous about disturbing the ritual with anything he wasn't supposed to do.

The magic heart beat through him like the rest and he found it soothing and empowering, reassuring in their cause. Wil closed his eyes then until he heard Odal's voice ask them why they were here.

Yes, he wanted differentiation. He cherished what he'd found in it.

He didn't know alot about the spiritborn but he wanted everyone to be able to reach whatever goals they strove for. If spiritbound was the pinnacle of their power, yes. Go for it.

Wil thought the court was beautiful. He'd like to come back here more. Yes.

Ezra had been terrifying but they hadn't geased him at all, even so. Maybe they didn't need it? It sounded pretty shady anyway.. It should go.

Everyone should get powers because they wanted them, not because they were forced. Wil said yes with all his heart.

Wil wanted everyone to have the life the chose and worked for. If that meant it was a magic zombie? Okay. And if it meant eras of suffering ended? Let that happen as well. No one should suffer or not live the life they wanted.

Wil looked at Nasir, because he was home and family, he looked at Alexis and then around at all his friends. Perhaps even if disfunctional they all were magical family. If he knew anything about families... it mostly meant arguing. He maybe wasn't good at some of this, but to be part of it was a gift that should be protected.  

[Melancholies]

Shiloh could feel the sheer amount of magic present too; it made his hair swirl, his clothes billow slightly, but he remained steadfast and firm. His eyes were locked on the center, on Leila, on Kaleb—I'm proud of you bud—on America, his fellow principal, as she spun the thread round and around and around... His hand was still clamped on Jamie's—and there went his consent and his resolve billowing away...

In the depths of his mind space—Jamie would feel it, of course he would—there would be a strange shift, like a fault line giving away. Eerily enough, nothing came from it. Or was the absence a mark of what occurred? What had moved?

His voice was not booming as he spoke:

Shall there still be differentiation?

"Absolutely." He would never tear that away from anyone, from the ones who had really grown into their roles, for the ones that cherished and loved what it gave them. He didn't make that list. He didn't really care. Life was a b***h.

Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?

"Absolutely." And he spoke so assuredly, not because of himself, but because of Jamie standing next to him. He could hear his thoughts; Jamie wanted it, Shiloh would stand by him through the thick and think. "Within reason. Make it a power to grow into. Make it a power to be proven, just like the Nobility."

Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?

"Yes, for the Nobility, for everyone, but mostly for the fetches that don't want to come back to our side and our life. They deserve a place, and they were promised a place, and I'm not going to be the one that takes that place away from them." It was a Noble's duty to protect and provide for the fetches, he realized. The Court had so much more potential too though... it could have space for everyone. It could be a resource throughout the cycles.

Shall the noble geas be destroyed?

"Only if we have a stand-in." He responded softly, "There needs to be a threat. There needs to be a consequence. There needs to be ways to make sure what happened with the Burning Man or the Spinel Lady never happens again. There needs to be a fallback to prevent the waves of abuse this ******** place has become known for."

Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?

"I never asked for this. There needs to be a method for a Noble to resign. There needs to be a check to make sure no Noble lives on and on and on until they go ******** mad. There absolutely needs to be a time limit."

Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?

Shiloh's eyes were hollow as he echoed his previous thought. "Yes." He said, his voice heavy like an iron weight.

Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?

"Yes."

Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?

"Yes."

And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?

"Absolutely."

Will you swear to create a pathway for those who wish to return to the life of a nonmagical human?

"If my life ******** depended on it." There was the crux of his resolve. "I made a promise to my friend. If there's one thing this ******** charter does with my magic, make it give him his life back, make it give him his face back, his skin back, his hair back and his eyes back. Being a fetch isn't a tragedy. Having your humanity stolen from you through this Court ******** is."

And there was that. Everyone's answers were floating around in quiet mumbles, muddled together and mixed in the thread woven around the box construct before them. Offer your own thoughts and wishes? His eyes were gleaming again. He doubted he had enough magic to sway the entirety of the casting—Renard, whatever he was trying to accomplish, couldn't even do that—but he still had a shitload of magic to offer up as the key, so it didn't mean he wouldn't try anyway. No more deer triplets, at least not the ones still alive. Pride doesn't want this. Noeh doesn't want this—leave them out of this. Find someone else to be a filter if it really ******** matters. He sighed, I signed this charter not at one, but as two. Where I go I want Jamie to come with me. Where he goes, I want to be with him. Can you grant that?

Even if it didn't, he'd find a way.

How you holding up, Jame?

saedusk

 

[azuredreams]

This magic was-

It was wonderful.

It was the kind of magic Nasir wanted to know more about, the kind that was shared between people. This was what he had been looking for, though it only lasted as long as the strings were wound. A smile went to both Wil and Shun, the box being bound up with the threads that was everyone's magic.

Another smile went to Alexis, even if things were uneasy, and then to the rest. To his friends, to everyone that he cared about. They could do this, they could make it anew.

"Shall there still be differentiation?" Yes.

"Shall the spirit-bond be reborn?" ... only if people want it, only if it's a choice. Only if people train.

"Shall the Court remain a space within these walls?" Yes, because there needs to be a place we can all gather. Not just the nobles but everyone.

"Shall the noble geas be destroyed." ... if there's another way.

"Shall we limit the time for which nobility serves?" "Shall we elect new nobles with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?" Nobles should only serve if they are capable and only if they are able to look after both worlds. If they can't, then they shouldn't be nobility. That was, after all, part of the problem Nasir had with the Court. It felt as if they weren't really looking out but, perhaps, with these changes ...

"Shall the moonwalkers be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk." Yes but ... don't let the moon madness take them if something happens and they can't get to this world? It can hurt many.

"Shall the wargs be selected with intention, with consent, and with the desire to take responsibility for both worlds in which they walk?" Yes and let our familiars live as we do or give us a way to ensure that harm does not come to the warg in the event of a natural death.

"And shall those whose explorations of magic have brought them to a new state of being be protected and safeguarded by those who take upon themselves these responsibilities?" Yes, they've helped us so much. The fetches, in Nasir's opinion, were wonderful even if they were ... not exactly what he had thought of before.

"Will you swear to create a pathway for those who wish to return to the life of a nonmagical human?" If they wish it, then let there be a path. Let us help them as they have helped us.

Nasir fell silent then, looking around, and - because he could sense the urge - reached out and curled his fingers around Wil's. They had done it, they had help create the new Charter and it was, quite literally, all their hopes and dreams.

Let it not lead them astray.