User:NekoRex/House9

Alice_Margatroid knocks lightly at the door. She can tell, from the way the chimney expels smoke, that Marisa's up to something -- be it no good or something interesting. >Ambiance<:. It is late evening in the Forest of Magic, but something seems to be brewing (quite literally!) at the disheveled house in the woods, as Marisa is hard at work with her Elixir of Immortality. >Ambiance<:. So hard at work, in fact, that she doesn't hear the knocking. She is extremely focused on the task at hand, sitting at her desk covered in magic instruments Alice_Margatroid waits for a few minutes before grumbling to herself and entering anyways. She has to step around a few stray piles of books and a table that's since fallen over, uttering irritably about the state of the house, but she gravitates over to the table, silently watching over Marisa's shoulder. >Ambiance<:. The swirling, glowing potion being the focus of her interest, as she adds minute things to the bottle and occasionally casts a spell on it. It seems to be going well.  watches Marisa_Kirisame work on the elixer with a look of interest. She does notice alice come in and gives way for the puppeteer, but it's highly unlikely that she herself would be noticed. Marisa_Kirisame is still injured, but that doesn't seem to be stopping her much, especially since she doesn't need to move too far from her desk, which at the moment seems to be organized chaos. The amount of tools and ingredients she's managed to fit on the thing while having space to work is staggering. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Alright, just add a bit of this..." Marisa_Kirisame cuts a sliver of a warty mushroom with spots, grinding it up in a mortar and pestle, before adding it to the mix. The potion seems to glow much brighter. Marisa_Kirisame:. "And heat it up a bit more..." >Ambiance<:. The potion is heated up to keep it bright. Marisa_Kirisame refers to a small book on the desk of handwritten notes she's taken, some of the pages looking well-used as she constntly flips through results of past experiments. Marisa_Kirisame continues to not notice anyone at all is behind her looking at her work. Alice_Margatroid looks over the notes, leaning down a bit to see them, but not getting in her way. The idea of using mushrooms in some elixir of life seems awfully strange to her. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Some of this..." Marisa_Kirisame takes a mushroom that seems to be in it's own little case. For good reason too, as when Marisa plucks it out of the container, it appears to be painful to touch, something she appears to have forgotten in her concentration. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Ayayayaya! Ouch ouch ouch!" Marisa_Kirisame fumbles the mushroom for a second, before tossing it into the air. Alice_Margatroid:. ... idiot. You're going to bumble up everything now, aren't you? Don't let that ruin anything.. Alice_Margatroid almost considers having one of her dolls go up and catch the mushroom the moment she sees it leave Marisa's hands, but.. Alice_Margatroid passes on the idea. Marisa_Kirisame takes a pair of chopsticks and uses that to catch the mushroom, but the surprise of Alice suddenly being right behind her nearly makes her fall out of her chair. Marisa_Kirisame:. "WAH! ALICE!" Alice_Margatroid:. I did knock. Marisa_Kirisame pauses for a long moment, before answering "....right. Well, my potion is nearly done, so I guess I don't mind you watchin'." Marisa_Kirisame:. (She has no need for the results anyway, I guess.) Alice_Margatroid:. I still find it silly that you'd go to all this effort when you could just request my help.. Alice_Margatroid rolls her eyes, shaking her head somewhat. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Just two more ingredients..." Marisa says, getting back to her work. She carefully takes her hakkero and summons an open flame, to start burning the mushroom she holds with her other hand, and lets the ashes collect into a small bowl. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Well I might as well finish this batch, I've been workin' on it all summer." Marisa_Kirisame says this as she adds the ashes to the concoction, which seems to fizz as a result now. Alice_Margatroid:. Are you even certain that it would have any effect? I almost feel bad for you.. you don't know if something is certain, and you put all that time towards it, when there's easier methods of getting things done. Marisa_Kirisame then pores over her notes to see if there's anything she has left to do before she adds the last ingredient. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Well I don't get much done without experimentation, and maybe if I get a batch right, I could make another one and customize it to work, for, say, Reimu. Imagine that shrine maiden not worryin' about her bloodline. Heh heh." Marisa_Kirisame:. (Which is also why I have to keep this as secret as possible...) Alice_Margatroid:. Seems like a stupid thing to worry about in this land.. and, I suppose. You just have to make it so that you take the difficult route every time, don't you? Whatever makes you happy, I guess... Marisa_Kirisame:. "Difficult route? I've never heard of any magician stopping their agin' an easy way." Alice_Margatroid:. It was much easier than endlessly messing with mushrooms, at least. Alice_Margatroid:. I knew what I was doing. You don't seem to be. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Hmph. I've only been at this for 8 or so years. How long did it take you?" Alice_Margatroid ponders for a moment. Alice_Margatroid:. My aging's slowing was periodic, so it would be difficult to say. Alice_Margatroid:. Perhaps about the same amount of time. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Guess my method ain't so hard after all..." Marisa says, getting back to her work. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Lots of my earlier batches have been way too big to drink, but this one is finally small enough. With one last ingredient, I'll be able to see if this is the one..." Marisa_Kirisame takes a scalpel resting in a cup, inspecting it to make sure it's clean, and in a dramatic fashion, presses the tip against the thumb of her free hand, until droplets of blood begin to well from the point. Alice_Margatroid frowns somewhat at this procedure, finding it a bit strange, but she stays quiet for now. Marisa_Kirisame holds her bleeding thumb over the potion until a single drop plips down into the jar, and it immediately begins to swirl and boil, as Marisa quickly rushes to cork the bottle. Alice_Margatroid:. Or, I suppose, you could always just go pester that Lunarian nurse.. seeing as she went and created an elixir of absolute immortality.. but that'd be too easy for you, too, wouldn't it.. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Already asked her about it, she just thought I was nuts for tryin to make something similar." Marisa_Kirisame carefully watches the madly boiling potion as it struggles to escape the bottle, but is stopped by the cork. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Hmmm..." Alice_Margatroid:. Somehow, I'm not surprised. From what I've heard, taking three doses of the elixir she made does.. bothersome things to a person. Alice_Margatroid:. ... if you intend to drink that, you should probably do so before it becomes sentient and learns how to remove the cork. Marisa_Kirisame:. "It's fine, I think... just gotta wait for it to stop boiling...." >Ambiance<:. The glass of the bottle seems to slightly warp as the potion continues to boil without provocation. It looks like it'd be too hot to drink anyway. Alice_Margatroid:. .. Or, perhaps, you should cool it. Alice_Margatroid:. Have you any ice in the house? Alice_Margatroid makes a quick gesture with one of her hands-- one of her dolls rise up into the air, coming to life from a previous relaxed state. Marisa_Kirisame:. "No, terrible idea. The glass would shatter." Alice_Margatroid:. ... Cool water, then? Marisa_Kirisame:. "Temperature difference looks like it would still be too high. It'd still shatter." Alice_Margatroid:. Well, then either that glass is going to eventually melt if it doesn't cool. You should find a solution to that, as well. >Ambiance<:. The potion's reactivness seems to begin settling down in its own, however, the mad boiling slowing down. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Hrmmmm..." Marisa says, sounding annoyed. "Cmon..." >Ambiance<:. Eventually it settles down completely, leaving the slowly swirling, glowing, bottled mass. Marisa_Kirisame is silent as she stares at it. Marisa_Kirisame takes a pair of tongs and removes the bottle from the stand it has been placed on during the experimenting, and shakes it a small bit before frowning intensely. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Damn." Alice_Margatroid:. It looks fine. What has you so aggravated? Alice_Margatroid:. I suppose I know not what to look for, but it doesn't look as if it failed in some spectacular manner. Marisa_Kirisame:. "It's air. I can't drink it." Marisa reveals, the potion not "sloshing" about at all when she shakes it, but having the same mass. "A lot of air. Must have completely boiled." Alice_Margatroid:. Then condense it? Alice_Margatroid:. If it's in a gaseous state, then just cool it back into liquid. Alice_Margatroid:. Simple. Alice_Margatroid sighs, rolling her eyes and moving to find a chair. She's the impression that this is only the beginning of being here, even if she doesn't mind terribly much. Marisa_Kirisame looks thoughtful as she puts the potion back. It was still plenty hot, perhaps it would just take time? Marisa_Kirisame:. "Guess I'll have to wait, then. Can't risk cooling it with magic, might ruin it." Marisa says. Alice_Margatroid:. You "guess"? And you were going on about how long it had taken, you surely can wait longer. Alice_Margatroid reaches over to the table nearby, picking up a book at random. Predictably, she really has no idea what she's reading, but goes over the text out of boredom all the same. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Didn't expect it to boil like that... that's a new reaction...." Marisa mutters as she looks at her notes, writing down a few as well. Alice_Margatroid:. You don't test it all on yourself, do you? Surely you test it on smaller things, such as rats or mice, before doing anything rash.. Alice_Margatroid frowns a bit when she takes note of the subtle magical signature left on this book, giving it away who the original owner was. She continues to idly read over the text -- it seems to be a book on health management with magic. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Never had the chance to drink one, really. There's always some sort of problem. It's too big, or it goes bad too quickly to drink, or something else." Alice_Margatroid:. "Too big". Given law of conservation of mass, you're telling me that you used an initial amount that's too much to drink? Sounds like poor planning to me. Marisa_Kirisame:. "It's never worked trying to drink only parts of it at a time, and trying to use less amounts of the ingredients have just made the results bad. I've had to do a lot of fiddling with my recipe over the years." Alice_Margatroid:. But if it's "only parts"... why not just mix it thoroughly until it's homogeneous throughout? Or is it just a matter of not drinking enough to have a noticable effect? Alice_Margatroid:. I'm starting to think that the mushrooms are having an effect on your brain, and not in a good way. Marisa_Kirisame:. "When I only imbibe part of it, the magic spells seem to get disrupted. Like rubbing out part of a magic sigil." Alice_Margatroid:. .. I don't even know if that has anything to do with what I just said, but.. Marisa_Kirisame shrugs. Marisa_Kirisame:. "I dunno what to tell ya, those are the results I've gotten so far." Marisa_Kirisame:. "I just know it doesn't do anything unless you imbibe it all at once, and it only works if it's still glowin'." Marisa_Kirisame:. "Speakin' of which..." Alice_Margatroid:. As opposed to something? >Ambiance<:. The potion has been steadily losing it's glow as it cools down. Marisa_Kirisame:. "As opposed to not workin' at all." Alice_Margatroid:. What kind of evidence is given that it only works when it glows? You're leaving out so much information, Marisa. Marisa_Kirisame tries to touch the potion, but the bottle is still hot to the touch. Alice_Margatroid:. No wonder it's taken you eight years. You should just let me handle all of the information or something, obviously you're not well-equipped enough to take care of it. Alice_Margatroid huffs. Marisa_Kirisame:. "The ones that were too big were successful, I'm sure of it. Dunked a fish in the first one and it didn't seem to die." Alice_Margatroid:. It didn't die when you smothered it in potion, or it didn't die after you subjected it to tests after the potion? Maybe it was simply a hardy fish. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Nah, it lived in the potion. Swam about inside it. Never needed to feed it. Second I toop a cup of the stuff out though, the potion lost all its magic." Alice_Margatroid:. How unfortunate for the fish. Alice_Margatroid:. Well.. you have fun fussing about with your improper data. I believe I should be leaving now-- don't burn your house down or anything stupid like that, because then it would spread, and nobody wants that. Alice_Margatroid rises to her feet, gathering her dolls around her, and.. taking the book she was reading with her, as she starts off towards the door. >Ambiance<:. The potion seems to be all but dark now, unfortunately. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Gotta figure out what went wrong this time..." Marisa mutters to herself, as she finds the potion is still too hot to touch. Marisa_Kirisame:. "This will be the ninth year of research... but I think I finally have enough data to peerfect it." Koishi_Komeiji:. "Aiya...what a shame." Marisa_Kirisame:. ((*will finally have enough Alice_Margatroid:. My offer remains, of course... Marisa_Kirisame sighs. Alice_Margatroid sighs, stepping outside and closing the door behind her. It's chilly out, and she has no real intention of letting it invade anywhere warm as she heads home.  drifts next to Marisa_Kirisame, craning for a closer look at the potion. Was she here the whole time, or did she just come back? Marisa_Kirisame:. "Maybe I should take her up on her offer, but not if it takes me another 8 years..." --	Alice_Margatroid (Marinea.thousand.lifeless.eyes) has Left #Marisa's_House (: Silly, silly witch, you've probably been wasting your time.) Koishi_Komeiji:. "You'll be fine," Koishi reassures. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Might be worth a shot if my next batch still fails." Marisa_Kirisame:. "If I can figure out what made it boil, I might be able to get a liquid batch small enough to drink." Koishi_Komeiji:. "Maybe you could try mixing mushrooms with something else?" Marisa_Kirisame:. "Such as?' 	Koishi_Komeiji shrugs.  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Sticks?"  	Marisa_Kirisame frowns. "Sticks aren't magical."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Herbs?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I do put a few in there, but it is mostly mushrooms."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Well, maybe it's time to put more herbs."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I'll have to do some tests tonight on this." Marisa says, tapping the now cool, now dark bottle.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"The magic is still intact, at least. It's just not going to do anything." 	Koishi_Komeiji nods slowly, "sis used to say that when you can't solve a problem, it's better to take a step back to rethink your solution."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Right, I know that. I would still be makin aquariums of immortality if I didn't do that." Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Fufu."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"It's not like I have any better to do." Marisa says, tapping her head bandage.  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Yes..."  	Koishi_Komeiji frowns a little, but then it flashes back to a more cheery smile.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I'll figure out what went wrong tonight, while the magic on it lasts, and start collecting new ingredients tomorrow."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"I can join you, right?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"On collectin' or research?"  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Yup."  	Marisa_Kirisame does a beat.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"That doesn't answer the question."  	Koishi_Komeiji gives a little giggle at that, "oopsie."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"How about both?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I dunno how much help you can be on research. You'd have to know about three months worth of potion making to figure out how I do it. Koishi_Komeiji:. "Aw..." Koishi_Komeiji:. "Maybe i should try becoming a magician like Marisa." Marisa_Kirisame holds up her thick-looking notebook. Marisa_Kirisame:. 'You're a youkai already, you don't need to bother with these." Marisa deadpans Koishi_Komeiji:.	"But wouldn't it be fun to try some magic?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Mmph, maybe. You're already pretty strong though, you don't have much use for it. Danmaku's all about firepower, after all." Koishi_Komeiji:.	"I could use all those poisonous mushrooms and make a 'toxic spark'!"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I don't think you're immune to poisons either...  Koishi_Komeiji:. "Aw. I could at least try." Marisa_Kirisame:. "Sorry, I ain't teachin' ya. You can read the books if ya want, I guess, but I can't guarantee you'll have any luck." Marisa_Kirisame:. (Last thing I want is her filling my house with toxic gas, too!) Koishi_Komeiji makes an exaggerated pout. Koishi_Komeiji:. "Well if Marisa won't teach me about making poison magic, how about light magic?" Marisa_Kirisame frowns. She's had people ask her that before. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Sigh, alright, fine. Let's see if you can do a basic light spell." Marisa_Kirisame snaps her fingers to produce a bright ball of light in the air, as if to demonstrate. Koishi_Komeiji snaps her fingers. A rose petal appears from nowhere, slowly floating onto the ground. Marisa_Kirisame:. '......I didn't say you had to do that. I was just demonstrating." Marisa_Kirisame:.	(I barely have to even think about it to cast that spell)  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Aw."  	Marisa_Kirisame then snaps to disable every light spell in the house, making it pitch black.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"It's a simple spell. Just imagine my house being brighter, concentrate real hard, and try to make your energy flow into your fingers. Then, produce a light with the snap of your fingers." Marisa_Kirisame:.	"You have to think a lot about light to do it your first time."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	(Can she even manage to do it? Some of it's got to be subconcious.)  	Koishi_Komeiji doesn't have much of a mind to think with. She does try, but when she snaps her fingers more rose petals are created, not light.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	((which Marisa wouldn't see, because it's dark))  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"You're probably not concentrating enough."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Aiya, this is hard."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Don't look at me, it took me most of my life to get this good."  	Koishi_Komeiji tries snapping her fingers a few times without success.   Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Maybe you just need to spend more time concentrating before you try. Channel more energy." Marisa_Kirisame:.	(The first few tries are awfully inefficient)  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Aiya, i don't really know how to concentrate..."  	Koishi_Komeiji seems to really want to make this work. The next time she snaps her fingers a dim light seems to illuminate the house before promptly disappearing.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Well apparently you do, cause you managed it for a bit. Keep tryin' I guess." Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Oh..."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I think it took me a full day before I managed to get one off properly."  	Koishi_Komeiji gets rather excited by this. She tries snapping her fingers more, and the room gets a little brighter than before, though equally short lived.  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"The trick of the spell is that the snapping generates enough heat to light it up, like a match."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Hmm...this feels a little boring..."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"What if I tried to do a master spark now?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"I think that's a little advanced..."  Marisa_Kirisame:.	(It's also heat magic as well.)  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"What if I tried, though?"  Marisa_Kirisame:.	"Wouldn't hurt, if we took it outside, I guess."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Yay~"  	Marisa_Kirisame turns the lights back on and heads outside.  	Koishi_Komeiji follows along, walking with a spring in each step. Marisa_Kirisame grabs her Grimoire on the way out, and sets the physical components up when she takes her mini-hakkero out, adding a pinch of magic powder onto the magic circle, before handing it to Koishi. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Be careful with this." Marisa chides. Koishi_Komeiji takes the hakkero, examining it with a look of curiousity. Koishi_Komeiji:. "So...what should I do with this?" Marisa_Kirisame:. "You need to know the spell, first. Marisa says, turning her grimoire to the page containing the spell. 	Marisa_Kirisame hands her the book (Which is a bit heavy) to hold with the other hand.  	Koishi_Komeiji gives a little yelp when she holds the book, surprised by its relative weight.  Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Let's see..."  Koishi_Komeiji:.	((I don't think she would be able to read a thing, would she?))  Marisa_Kirisame:.	((the verbal component is probably written in Japanese))  	Marisa_Kirisame moves away to set up a "dummy" Koishi can aim at. It's a scarecrow that looks slightly like Patchouli, and is burned from being a test dummy.  Koishi_Komeiji:.	((I read somewhere that grimoires can't be understood by those who don't meet the level))  Marisa_Kirisame:.	((depends on who you ask, but it's probably true.))  Plushy:.	(( It makes sense to me ))  Marisa_Kirisame:.	((Master Spark is actually a pretty simple spell, though)) Marisa_Kirisame:. ((in theory)) Koishi_Komeiji:. "Hm hm..." Marisa_Kirisame:. ((At least Marisa's version, for Koishi)) Koishi_Komeiji tries to decipher the wods written, except at least half of them are undecipherable to her. This doesn't faze her though, as she starts aiming at the dummy with the hakkero. Marisa_Kirisame walks back and tells Koishi the final component to the spell. Marisa_Kirisame:. "To shoot, concentrate your mind, gently muttering the spell to the mini hakkero. Aim at someone you don't like, and a magicannon of love will be unleashed!" Koishi_Komeiji does as she is told, murmuring the spell to hakkero repeatedly. She looks rather determined to succeed, and so when she does activate the spell with what little knowledge she had of it, a thin piercing laser is emitted by the hakkero, striking the dummy in the torso with trails of rose petals in its wake. Marisa_Kirisame:. "Hmph. Well I'll be." Koishi_Komeiji:. "Uwaaa...i did it..." Marisa_Kirisame:. "Not a giant laser, but surprised you still managed to make it work." Koishi_Komeiji hasn't really done much. The laser was small in diameter, and a shadow compared to the real thing, but she looked happy nonethless. Marisa_Kirisame:. "I think that's enough goofing around for tonight. I still have to do tests on that potion..." Koishi_Komeiji nods, a wide smile on her face. Koishi_Komeiji:. "Thanks for letting me try that spell, Marisa!" Marisa_Kirisame:. "It's not like I've got a shortage of components for the spell." Marisa says, revealing a hefty-looking cloth pouch tied to the inside of her dress. Koishi_Komeiji:. "Oh...does that mean I can do it again?" Marisa_Kirisame:. "Yeah, I think I have enough here for a year's worth of Master Spark spells. You could try it again later if you want." Koishi_Komeiji:. "Yay...!" Marisa_Kirisame:. "Anyway, that's enough for tonight. I have work to do. Koishi_Komeiji:.	"Alrighty."  	Marisa_Kirisame heads back inside, getting back to work on her (failed) potion.