Spell Schooling

"Alright, Naoise. Do your best!"

Naoise glanced over at his friend, Aislinn, who was standing to the side a few feet away, watching attentively with a smile. He beamed back before turning to face his target with narrowed eyes. The small cluster of crystal he intended to hit sat on a pedestal of wood many yards away. Okay! You can do it! He focused intensely, putting his all into manifesting the latent energy around him into converging in a singular point. A few magical sparks flared up between his readied hands, as did his excitement... before the magic suddenly exploded in his face with a loud pop.

"You're trying too hard to control it," came Aislinn's unbothered call.

Dazed, he took a moment to allow his sight to come back before responding. The sudden light from his failed spell had temporarily blinded him. It had hurt a little more than he'd hoped, which had been to not hurt at all considering he never intended to hit himself. "How can you try too hard?" Naoise questioned, letting his arms drop to his side. "You told me to do my best, and so I am doing just that!"

"You're not supposed to keep hold of it," he replied as he drifted over to where Naoise stood, "which is what, at least from how it appeared, you were doing. You held on far too long. You really don't need that much energy for magic missiles, Naoise."

Naoise hummed dejectedly in response. "But I want it to have a lot. It'll look even more pretty if there's more magic!"

"Then it'll keep exploding in your face, rather than on the target."

"Oh..."

"Watch," Aislinn said. He mirrored how Naoise had held his own hands moments ago, and when the energy just barely began to flare up between them, he threw a hand forward and shot the magical dart out, hitting the target. He was a little taken aback by the thinly veiled disappointment in Naoise's expression, but regardless he continued on. "See? You only need a little."

Naoise bounced back to his normal cheerful demeanor. "Ah. Okay!"

He echoed what Aislinn had just showed him, but regardless of his mentor's instructions to do otherwise, he held on to the energy under his wavering control just a little bit longer. Aislinn quickly waved a single hand and instantly dispelled the energy before Naoise could do anything else.

"Hey!"

"I'd rather you not explode that in my face, thank you," Aislinn replied.

"I wasn't going to hold on as long this time!" he lightly protested. His smile then grew a little more sheepish. "I just wanted it to still be, ah... a little bit more? Prettier? Like how I've seen you usually do it."

Aislinn sighed, but he couldn't help but smile a little wider at the compliment. "When you've had more practice and training, perhaps. I'd like you to just get one missile down for now. Once you can control that, then we'll discuss more."

Naoise sighed quietly but again readied himself. He held back for a moment, however, hesitantly pulling his hands back slightly as he looked over to his friend. Aislinn was staring at Naoise's hands with a very serious look on his face, but at noticing Naoise's drifting attention, he flashed a reassuring smile.

"You can do it!"

He relaxed somewhat. Now thoroughly encouraged again, Naoise turned and focused for his third and final attempt. This time he released the magical energy when he knew he should, despite the urge to just try just one more time to do what he really really wanted to try and do. The blue surge of magic soared through the air like a shooting star and although it seemed to have very little effect on the distant crystal, the magical dart reached it's intended target. Naoise gasped, then once it had set in he excitedly pointed at the crystal.

"Oh! I did it!"

"Ah!" Aislinn beamed back. "See? I had hope in you!"

Naoise hummed in excitement and twirled in place, and for a moment Aislinn briefly wondered if it was Naoise that was now about to explode from sheer exhilaration. The Sidhe in question suddenly stopped in place and pointed at Aislinn. Although he was still smiling widely, his eyes held a little more seriousness to them.

"You!"

Aislinn stared in slight bewilderment. "Yes?"

"You held back when you showed me!"

He blinked. Was that what his problem had been? "Um—"

"Now I want to see you do your best!"

After a moment of silence, Aislinn laughed lightly. "Oh! Is that all? Well then, I suppose I can humor my dedicated student."

With a flourish Aislinn turned and held a single hand outstretched, his other held out to his side. He feinted to the side then dashed to the other, multiple missiles flying from his hands one after the other. Multiple clear chimes rang through the air as the crystal was hit repeatedly. Naoise watched in absolute delight.

"I want to do magic like you do someday, Aislinn!"

Aislinn stopped his barrage of attacks to face Naoise. After a pause he finally grinned with a little more genuineness to it than his usual smile.

"I'm sure you will, Naoise."