A Series of Foolish Events [Caleb and Gwen]

((Hey sorry for the long wait, we're currently nearing finals and my schedule is overloaded aha))

Caleb hadn't noticed how delicious cinnamon buns could appear to other people than himself, and seeing Gwen completely destroy hers with her mouth and closing her eyes in pure happiness, he started to enjoy his too.

Her peak in excitement burst when he mentioned his hobby with gems. She had been curious as to what he was researching, judging by her expression of disbelief, but with the mention of "gem shopping", Gwen entered another phase of endless questions. The loud noise made the other customer on the side look at them shortly before leaving the terrace. Logical. 

"I have a decent collection, yes," he answered, taking another bite from his pastry. Caleb was also surprised by her sudden increase in vocabulary. 'Magical calibration'? 'Criteria'? Maybe this peculiar elf wasn't all that nuts he thought she was. "I try my best to find and buy the best magical crystals. Any mediocre ones are immediately sold. They all serve one purpose, and that is to support my magical strength during my research." He paused.

"This research rests solely on my belief that we can reach other worlds by conjuring, you see. My dimension to which I have an affinity is vast, unexplored, and bottomless. Kind of like an ocean." He started gesturing with his hands, following his train of thought. "And, well, I believe that if I reach a certain level of power, I could be able to pierce this world's secrets." Caleb decided to leave out everything about communicating with the gods or bringing the dead back to life. He wasn't ready to debate on theology and moral values, especially not with this interrogation bomb sitting in front of him.

Caleb closed his eyes. "Actually, I was planning to go out and maybe see if some gems could be to my liking. A new shipment arrived to the store and they look potentially useful. You can tag along if you'd like." He glanced at her. "After you finish your buns, that is."

((Oof okokok! My finals are done and summer vacation is here so that means a lot more time for RPing! Replies should go on smoothly from now on))

As he ingested the last bite of his bun, Caleb picked up his napkin and curtly wiped his hands and mouth. He also took Gwen's and proceeded to throw the papers into the garbage bin as they left the terrace. Gwen was way ahead of him, and was running with determined conviction, although she had surely no idea where she was headed. Customers turned to watch her as she barreled past, and then sighed in relief. He couldn't blame then, Gwen was a lot to bear.

Speaking of which, she had absolutely no clue where she was supposed to go. After dashing through the bakery and slamming past the door, she quickly veered left. Caleb barely had the time to catch up to her, once again placing a hand on her shoulder to keep her still. "Gwen," he started. "The gem shop is to the right." Caleb felt as if he was babysitting.

"We're almost there," he said after a good five minutes of walking. "As you were wondering, yes, this store is one of my personal favorites, as they have quite the variety of gems. You'll see when we get there." They arrived at a rather small building with an uninteresting facade; a simple wall of grey bricks with no windows, and only a door. "It doesn't really look like much, but just go down the stairs as you enter. They have the gem shop in the basement." He motioned at her to go through first.

Gwen shot inside the building like a cannonball as Caleb nearly got run over by the excited elf. What a bundle of joy, that one. He closed the door behind him, and saw Gwen at the bottom of the stairs. She had the same glint in her eyes as when he announced he would buy her pastries. Uh oh. That usually meant trouble, and Caleb certainly knew this girl was capable of trouble.

Leaping off the final stair to pose victoriously, Gwen landed with a loud slam. The harsh creak of the wooden floor made him cringe. "Yes, indeed," Caleb said as he descended the stairs. "This is the place." He nodded to the elderly and bearded shopkeeper. As the man returned the greeting, Caleb could see Gwen twitching from anticipation while glancing at him. "You don't need my approval to admire the gems, Gwen. There's a large variety here, so gawk over them all you want. Just try not to damage any of the products."

As for him, he went to the shopkeeper and brought out his scrying crystal from the folds of his robes. He had found it lying around the outskirts of Miras and it was of surprisingly high quality. ((putting the easter hunt item to good use //wink)) "You'll excuse the acquaintance I brought along. I've been meaning to ask a few questions about the limitations of this crystal, you see." The conjurer trailed off into complex conversation about the gem's magical properties, all the while hoping that Gwen wouldn't cause another scene for him to handle.

Gwen's footsteps tapped against the wooden floor as she rushed towards the multiple shelves. As she went around admiring the different items displayed, Caleb was listening intently to the shopkeeper.


"I find it surprising you could find this just laying around the outskirts of town," he commented. "Its scrying potential is clearly above average. I'll have to make an additional check according to its facets, just to be certain." Caleb nodded in approval, and as the elderly man analyzed his gem, he glanced at Gwen. She was a curious one for sure, wanting to tag along with him to discover new things, but that's Gwen for you. Then again, she was calm for once. Caleb welcomed the change.



As she finally came back to join him, the shopkeeper interrupted his thoughts. Caleb raised his eyebrows. "At least 200 miles? That's quite impressive." Gwen's head squeezed in from the side, making the conjurer stumble. Wow. She was clingy. "Well, I wanted to make a quick check with you before actually using the gem's scrying ability. But now that it's done..." He picked up the crystal and handed it to Gwen. Maybe that wasn't the best idea in the world, but she looked so interested, so why not nurture that curiosity.

"Why don't you try out, Gwen? Usually all you have to do is hold the crystal in both of your hands and then concentrate on a certain location you want to visualize. It should appear here," he said, pointing towards the gem. "Why not have a go at it?"

Gwen stared back at him with a surprised expression. Caleb smiled reassuringly and watched her fiddle with the gem in her hands. She looked like she knew what she was doing, but hesitant nonetheless. The conjurer observed as the young elf cradled the crystal in both of her palms.

A few seconds ticked by as Gwen frowned intently at the crystal, and now it was Caleb's turn to hesitate. Did Gwen have any magic affinity whatsoever? Maybe he just forced this onto her without checking. He was about to speak up when he saw a small glint on the gem. That's a good sign, he thought.

Which turned out to be completely false. Gwen seemed to have lost her concentration for only a second and magical energy escaped her. The shopkeeper only had time to utter out a "Careful-" before the bubble popped, sending a small shockwave through the air. Caleb had to shield his eye as the wind whipped around him, and, seeing Gwen fall over, barely managed to grab her by her scarf. Not the most elegant way to handle a lady, but it would do.

He lifted her up to a standing position. "Careful now, let's try not to get hurt," Caleb stated. It must have been the third time in a day he had to secure Gwen. "Thought it was quite foolish of me to entrust you this task - especially when I had no knowledge of your capacities. Apologies." He turned to the shopkeeper. "Do you understand what just happened? It seems the magical flow was too much for our elf here, but I'm wondering if this gem has any... undesired side effects to it. I've had some that would literally explode when overused."

"None, huh? I see," Caleb commented as Gwen gleefully explained her almost nonexistent training. "Magic isn't something that can be easily used if one has no concrete goal for it in life. I'm not very surprised to hear that your tutor didn't last long." He turned to the shopkeeper and held out his hand. "I would like to test its scrying properties by myself now, if that's not an inconvenience."

With the gem now comfortably placed between his palms, he set his eye on the gem's reflective facets and concentrated. His mind wandered for a bit before settling for a specific location. Feeling light currents of magical energy coursing through his body, he gently pushed them towards his arms, up to his hands, until the gem responded by humming faintly. A blurry image of his desired goal appeared in the crystal.

Caleb arched his eyebrows. "Impressive," was his only comment, before giving one last push. All the crystal's facets lit up, and after a harsh flash, the light exploded in a myriad of colors, forming into shapes like a movie projection. At its center was the gem, and the mountains floated in the air like a hyperrealistic hologram. "Gilded Range," Caleb announced to Gwen and the shopkeeper, whose faces were bathed in the projection's golden light. "I went there once on a small adventure with a friend. A lot of things happened, but I'll never forget the immensity of those mountains. They were beautiful in the morning sun."

He gently willed the projection to fade away, and the crystal went back to its original state. "Thank you for all of your assistance," he said to the shopkeeper. The conjurer placed a few coins on the counter and at the elderly man's protests, he chuckled. "This is nothing compared to the help you've given me throughout multiple years. Surely you can at least accept this." The shopkeeper nodded and gestured towards Gwen. "Let's make a compromise. I can't accept this money with nothing to give in return." He turned to look at the light elf. "Choose whatever product that strikes your fancy in the basic section shelves. They should be to your right. That will be enough to compensate what Caleb has offered me."

Caleb cast a sheepish look towards the shopkeeper as Gwen squeezed his hand tightly. "Yes, indeed, I am your prince," he replied to amuse her. "And your prince recommends that you don't run off too excitedly or else—" He didn't have time to finish his sentence before Gwen shot away excitedly, and went around to look at the different displays. 

Caleb glanced at the light elf's disponible choices. They were simple gems that could be easily bought from any shop, but their magical potency was perfect for any type of beginner mages. As Gwen decided on the indicolite, Caleb shrugged. 

"It's a very pretty and basic type of gem, but I think it'll do," he commented as the shopkeeper came to them. He pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the glass case, and slid it aside. Picking up the fragment of indicolite, he placed it delicately in Gwen's hands. "There you go. Hope it comes of use to you."

A short goodbye later, both of them had quit the shop and were outside once again. The sun was slowly setting, and the sky was getting darker. "Well, that went by fast, didn't it?" Caleb said. "Today was quite the eventful day, although I must say that—" A pigeon swooped in and snatched the scrying crystal from his hand, and then perched high up on a tree, its treasure secured in its talons.