One Jump! [Al/Jenson/Vasilissa]

[Vasilissa Yaga]

Vasilissa listened to the boy’s request, and nodded. “Well, making something bigger…it isn’t much difference, really, so long as the proportions don’t change. And…it wouldn’t reverse itself, not exactly. Um. It would just…” She waved her hands vaguely. “You know. Asplode. Either metaphorically or literally. I’m sorry, I’m doing a bad job of explaining this.”

She rubbed her forehead. “It’s just—well, if you try to make things the way they shouldn’t be—sometimes it will snap back, sometimes it has a time limit. Other times it just kind of blows up in your face. Or nothing happens. Or the universe starts hating you. This is all really really technical.”

Vasilissa looked at the boy. “You…you want me to change something for you, don’t you?”

[Albert Aldein]

Al paid close attention to whatever it was that the girl was saying, making sure to pay close attention to any details about things going rather awry. But unfortunately for him, he didn't really understand much. Heck, looks like the girl didn't either. Not to say that she didn't know what she was doing or anything, but rather, it seemed that magic was such a complex idea to grasp and it was increasingly hard to explain.

He shook his head, telling her that she was doing a fine enough job of explaining things. He began to repeat what she was saying in his head. The universe could hate you. Sometimes, it will snap back. Sometimes, it has a time limit. Other times, it just kind of blows up in your face. Well, he figured the universe already hated him, so he didn't think too much on that. The next two, Al could have handled rather well. Especially since he would have done what he needed to do already by the time things snapped back or expired. But he wasn't looking forward to thinks blowing up in his face. Not one bit.

"Me? Oh no, not at all. I was just curious about magic. That's all, Al replied, sounding as though he had no ulterior motives. He knew he had to choose his words right next if he wanted things to go smoothly. "But...Well, I dunno...Maybe I should ask someone else about it. Someone more experienced. I wonder if that eye-liner magician could help me out..."

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[Vasilissa Yaga]

The doll glared at the boy. “She didn’t say she didn’t know what she was doing, boy,” it said. “She said she didn’t know how to translate it into the common tongue of Westron. Get it right.”

Vasilissa reached up and squeezed the doll’s arm. “Get out of his head,” she said, frowning up at it. “It isn’t nice.” She looked back at the boy. “I’m sorry, it really doesn’t have any manners at all.”

“You never let me have any fun,” the doll complained, folding its arms and sulking—which was actually quite an impressive feat, given it didn’t actually have any facial features to work with.

“That’s not true,” Vasilissa said quietly. “I can probably help you, you know. Just don’t go to him. I don’t…trust him.”

[Albert Aldein]

Al threw a confused look over to the doll when he spoke up, rather snarlingly, eyes glaring over at him. It was pretty weird having a conversation with a girl and a doll, but he's had weirder conversations with the patrons of the Neptune Hotel. It was then when the girl magician apologized for the doll's behavior. It was rather weird seeing how the girl was rather calm and courteous, while the doll, the one that was supposed to be her id or something, was exceptionally smart mouthed.

The boy couldn't help but feel glad at what the female sorceress said. It felt good hearing someone caring for him, even though she probably intended the statement to be more negative towards the other street magician. Al paused for a minute, as though thinking.

"Well, yeah, I get ya. I don't trust him either...but..." Al trailed the last words of his sentence. "No offense or anything, but you look a bit young. I'm sure you know a lot about magic and all, but..."

Al paced around for a bit, stroking his chin inquisitively before stopping abruptly, as though an idea just hit him straight in the face. Al jammed his hands in his pockets and began to sift through the contents, before pulling out a Neptune Hotel pen, one he had accidentally pocketed as he was signing out of his shift. "I got it! Let's see what you can do. Turn this pen into gold. I mean, just so I can see how magical you really are." Al tossed the pen carefully in her direction and waited, hoping that she would bite.

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[Vasilissa Yaga]

“I’m not that young,” Vasilissa muttered. She watched the boy pace back and forth, thinking. About what? You could know, said a voice in the back of her mind. Vasilissa shoved it down. People’s minds should be private places. She could just ask, like everyone else on the planet.

The boy tossed her his pen. It was actually the doll who caught it, Vasilissa had been sort of zoning out.
“Pah,” said the doll, curling its lip—and making Vasilissa itch in the process, because it was an illusion, the doll not having any lips. “He wants us to prove how magical we are and he doesn’t even ask us to do something hard. Hurry up, I’m hungry.”

Vasilissa took the pen from the doll. Turning things into gold, or anything else for that matter, wasn’t actually very hard. You just pushed a few atoms here and there. It was only a matter of a few rearrangements—

She opened her eyes as the pen became much heavier in her hands. It was now solid gold. “Done,” she said, holding up the pen.

“That enough for you?” the doll asked.

[Albert Aldein]

Al raised his eyebrows as he focused his attention on the girl, wondering if she was going to bite, though he made it a point to look inconspicuous. If she realized that he had an ulterior motive for things, then he was sure that she wouldn't agree to it. As the pen began its decline, it was the doll who caught it. Al was still sort of freaked out about the whole moving inanimate object thing, but he figured it was something that he should have expected. After all, she was magic.

"Well, you're rather full of yourself," Al told the doll. He wasn't trying to be rude or anything, but they didn't exactly scream 'powerful magic users', so could they blame him for wanting to see what it was that they could do?

Al watched silently, crossing his arms over his chest, eyeing the doll and then the girl rather carefully. She took the pen from it and shut her eyes. It was then when the simple and plastic pen began turning into gold. The sun hit the pen, and the light glinted towards him, as though rubbing in his face that they had done it. He rubbed his eyes, before grabbing the pen from her hands, quickly eyeing it. Well, it looked authentic. It sure felt authentic. At least, that's what he thought, having no idea how gold looked or weighed. Regardless, it wasn't just a regular pen anymore. Instantly pocketing the pen, mentally reminding himself to hit a pawnshop later on to get the pen appraised, he clapped his hands, rather amazed.

"That's quite impressive. Good job," he cried out. "Now, since turning stuff to gold was relatively easy for you, would it be possible to maybe, ask that you make me, uh...rich?" Al scratched his head, a bit embarrassed by his request. It was a cliche type of request, wanting money, and she probably thought he was extremely shallow for it. But being practical, didn't everyone need money? He let out an innocent smile that practically begged her.

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[Vasilissa Yaga]

“Um…” Vasilissa said, looking down awkwardly. Technically, as an apprentice, she wasn’t allowed to do magic for money. She wasn’t supposed to do magic for charity, either, given that Baba Yaga always told her never to give something for nothing. “Er, that’s another technical question…”

“Oh, quit waffling,” said the doll. “We could, but we won’t. We’re still in an apprenticeship, and we’re not allowed to accept payment for magic. Or do magic for free. You’re out of luck, boy.”

Vasilissa shot the doll a glare. “You could have been nicer about it.”

“Why?” asked the doll. Vasilissa sighed and muttered something about utter hopelessness and annoying psychic crutches.

“Anyway,” she said. “Um, I’m sorry.”

[Albert Aldein]

"Oh," Al replied, sounding rather down and depressed. For a split second, Al saw a new life flash before him. One where he didn't have to wake up in a rundown apartment, waiting to get to work for a dead-end, low-paying job, having to save for days just to eat a rather hearty meal. He didn't even need an entirely extravagant life. All he wanted was to feel and experience life, without having to think about surviving day to day, being able to spend twenty four hours just doing what he wanted to do, and not what he needed to.

He snapped out of his thoughts when the girl and the doll began arguing once more. It was rather weird how this happened quite frequently. He didn't even know why the girl lets the doll do that to her. And as Al played back his thoughts about the girl and the doll, he let out a laugh. He must be going insane.

Al looked at the girl, still rather down, before he spoke. "I understand. Thanks though."

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[Vasilissa Yaga]

“I really am sorry,” Vasilissa said, looking down at her shoes. “But…you have the pen. That ought to be worth something, right?”

“It won’t last long,” said the doll, cocking its head. “Huh. Gimme the orange peel.”

Vasilissa looked up at it and blinked. “Huh?

“You hear me. Orange peel. Now.”

Vasilissa shrugged, still bewildered, and handed the orange peel to the doll. Its eyes flared, and suddenly the peels were…gold.

“Did you just…?”

The doll winked. “I’m allowed to break the rules. And we are basically a nice person. Most of the time. Well. Some of the time, anyway. Occasionally.” It waved one floppy arm, and the peels floated over to the boy. “Enjoy, kid. Don’t exhaust ‘em too fast, we won’t be able to do this again.”

[Albert Aldein]

Al really had no reason to feel bad. He had no idea what the rules to magic were, and if they said that they couldn't just go and do magic for people, they probably really couldn't. And besides, the girl did have a point. He did get a gold pen off of it. Surely, it'd cost a good amount, probably enough to last a couple of days. A week, if Al didn't get too excited to spend it. But then, as though reading his thoughts, the doll answered, saying it wouldn't last long. Al just smiled over at them, thankful nonetheless.

But then, something else happened. The doll spoke once more, cocking his head, speaking to Vasilissa. Was it...asking for her garbage? Yeah, it definitely asked for the orange peelings. "Huh?" Al spoke, almost in unison with the girl. Nonetheless, she obeyed, hading the rather small doll her orange peel. Al raised an eyebrow, looking at the tandem rather curiously. It was weird how the two seemed rather opposite to one another. Weird, but maybe it was rather fitting. Like how one complements the other. It was goofy, in a real sort of way.

Al's train of thought vanished as the doll's eyes flared a bright yellow. It was scary enough seeing a doll talk, but now, it looked like it was possessed by the devil (even though it probably really was). However, Al found it particularly hard to concentrate on the doll when he could see that the peelings that it was holding began to change in color. Slowly, the traces of orange began being enveloped in gold, the light glinting as it hit it. Al's jaw dropped, shocked to see what had happened. And when he was handed over the gold pieces, then he was just awestruck. He took it unquestioningly, but was too shocked to comprehend. It took him a few minutes before things actually sunk in. He laughed at himself, figuring how stupid he must have looked then.

"Wo-oooah. Geez, thanks a lot. I, uh, I'll put it to good use," he cried out, still rather amazed. He made it a mental note to put these two in his people-I-owe-big-time list. He smiled sheepishly at the two as he slipped the gold bits into his pocket, wondering what to do with them.

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