Movies With The Dynamic Duo

With the conflict properly resolved and the tension gone, we agree that we’re just going to spend today relaxing, much to Belle’s chagrin, who thinks we should be training.

Theoretically, we could push ourselves and attempt the next raid segment, (and I’m sure Blighttown will push us hard enough as it is), we’re all a bit tired from the stress of the fight.

Pushing ourselves too hard, especially after such an emotional last 24 hours, could lead to burn out for all of us, a fact which Belle very reluctantly agrees with.

Elsa is busy working on a painting, while Olivia, Skylar and Belle are working together reading the Arcane Spellbook we got as a drop a few days ago.

Mia, Paige, and Ivy are playing with Sol and Luna to give the kittens some attention and keep them entertained.

All of that is how I find myself rewatching A Nightmare Before Christmas (Emma’s favourite movie), with Emma and Lena.

“You are such a stereotype, you know that right?” I muse, glancing at Emma.

“I don’t care, it’s a good movie!” Emma insists.

“Babe, that’s not helping the stereotype.” Lena chimes in with a smile.

“You could talk, Miss ‘Y’all’.” Emma throws back with a smirk.

“Shaddup!” Lena replies.

We settle into a comfortable silence watching the movie.

Eventually, a question strikes me, and I have to voice it. “Have either of you two thought about what you wanna do after this?” I ask.

Emma sucks in her cheeks at the question. “Isn’t that a bit optimistic?” She asks.

I shrug. “Maybe. Still a good thing to think about, and there’s no sense in pessimism.” I reply.

“I dunno. I don’t really think about things.” Lena admits.

I stifle a laugh as Emma and I have the same response. “”Wow, we hadn’t noticed.””

Lena pouts for a few seconds, before her mind immediately jumps to another thought.

“Wait if y’all beat Mathias, what happens after? Isn’t he the big guy or whatever?” Lena asks.

I grimace, not enjoying the prospect of the task that lays ahead after beating Mathias, but knowing that if we win, it will be a necessity. “Yeah he is. If we beat him, the next step is trying to establish some kind of order in Sydney.” I say.

“Would that mean your guild taking control of things?” Emma asks.

I turn to her. “Yep, our guild would have to do the heavy lifting in that regard, to start with.” I say.

“Oh yeah, I’m here too. Being girls in charge, that’s a weird thought.” Emma muses.

“Hard to picture?” I ask.

The Sapphic Knight nods. “We’re just a bunch of gay people, when’s that ever happened? Like, ever?” She asks.

“I dunno, I think that’d be awesome.” Lena says.

Emma shakes her head. “It’d be weird. And the ethics too.” She says.

I nod. “That’s what I’m worried about. There isn’t really a practical way to go about this 100% ethically.” I say.

Lena looks between us, confused. “What? What am I missing?” She asks.

Emma and I exchange a glance, before I explain the situation. “Because of Mathias, there’s no actual structure in place for any kind of a society. It’s pretty much everybody for themselves.” I say.

“For anything like that to be put in place, somebody needs to take charge and make it happen. Kick out all the gangs, build infrastructure, unite the city, and other such things.” I continue.

“Yeah, so?” Lena asks.

“If we do that, we’re claiming the right to lead by virtue of being the strongest. We can do our best to make things better and all, but the principle still isn’t great.” I explain.

Lena shrugs again. “I don’t see what the big deal is. We trust each other, right? Just hold an election after if you’re worried.” She says.

“How can you be so flippant about this? I can’t stop thinking about what we should do.” I ask her, genuinely curious.

Lena grins at me. “You worry too much, Gemstone. Just do stuff and be happy, and we’ll be good.” She says.

I shake my head, smiling at the girl. “You’re something else.” I tell her affectionately.

“Wait! If we’re like, taking over Sydney, does that mean we’d have Luna Park too?” Lena asks, her excitement at the prospect palpable.

“I mean, yeah probably.” I reply.

Lena squeals with excitement. “Eeee! I’ve always wanted to open a theme park! Can I do that? Can I can I?” She asks excitedly, looking at me with damn near puppy eyes.

I laugh at the adorable sight. “We’ll have to see who’s there first, but I can try to make it happen for you.” I say.

“Yessss! Thank you thank you thank you!” Lena says, giggling happily.

Her laughter is infectious, and I can’t help giggling along with her. “My god, you’re adorable.” I tell her, unable to stop the words slipping out.

Immediately, a smirk forms on the cute brunette’s face. “You’re pretty cute yourself.” She flirts back.

I can feel my cheeks reddening from the look Lena is giving me. I look at Emma, just to distract myself. It’s not fair, she shouldn’t be that goddamn cute.

Emma gives me a knowing look, seeming to know exactly what I’m thinking, but apparently deciding to give me a break from the flirting anyway. “I’d probably want to do something similar to what I did before, like back in the normal world.” She says, answering my question from before.

“How’s that?” I ask.

“You know how I’m like the manager of a non profit right? And how I do casework with queer and neurodivergent kids?” Emma asks, and I nod.

“Well I bet it’s a lot worse here.” Emma continues. “I think most magical kids are probably in a pretty bad situation, let alone queer and ND kids.”

“Probably, yeah.” I say, sighing. It’s the sad reality of a world like this.

“I’d love to set up something similar in the magical world once all this is over. Try to find foster families for kids in need, and set up social services for people who need it.” Emma says.

“It would be a lot to take on.” I tell her.

“I know. It’s worth it though. Besides, I’m sure I’ll be able to get other people to help.” Emma replies, resolute in her idea.

I look at her with admiration. She really is a good person. “That’s a very noble goal.” I say.

Emma smiles at me, a genuine and happy smile. “Thank you Gemma. I know you overthink it, but I think you’re a good person.” She says.

I smile back. “Thank you.” I tell her.

“You’re also an absolute babe.” She says with a smirk, apparently unable to resist adding that part.

My face flushes red, but before I can say anything in response, Olivia walks into the room, carrying the copy of the Arcane Spellbook.

Olivia hands the book to me. “We have finished with it.” She says. “We know how the Channeler’s ‘buff’ spell works, although none of us can perform it because it is outside our talents. Unfortunately, there is nothing much else of value in the pages.”

Our mentor indicates Emma. “We will however, be able to teach the ‘buff’ spell to you at some point.” Olivia offers.

Emma nods. “Thank you. I’d love to learn.” She says with a smile.

Olivia returns the smile briefly, before parting ways with us and exiting the room.

I look down at the book in my hand, excited for the new possibilities. The window from before pops up again.

I stop just long enough to read the window fully, before clicking the ‘yes’ button.

I draw in a surprised breath at the description of the spell. It costs a ton of mana, and has a lot of caveats, but a spell that drains an opponents mana is insane, and a massive asset for combat against mage opponents.

If evolving the skill is on the table, that’s incredibly busted. Even if it isn’t though, it’s still a pretty awesome spell to have in my toolbox.

I look at the new perk in Arcanist next, excited for another choice.

I’m not as aghast with this choice as I was with the Soul Arrow spell, but it’s a pretty near thing.

Mana Burst is still a somewhat cool spell, that could be useful for close range combat.

Overcharge is a pretty cool option, and does boost my damage output by a decent amount.

But an precharged barrier for Mana Shield? The utility on that is amazing, it immediately boosts my survivability and effectively adds a free 500HP.

The only cost is the opportunity cost for the other two choices, but given Gaia’s propensity for reusing choices, it’s possible they’ll still be there for me to choose another time.

The other limitation, that my mana bar needs to be full before the Overshield starts to charge up, is barely a limitation. It just adds an extra two minutes to my full recovery time between fights, which is nothing.

I choose the Overshield option, explaining the new upgrades to Emma and Lena as they happen.

“That’s so cool!” Lena exclaims, and I can only agree with her. I love my powers.

Afterwards, I settle into the couch and keep watching the movie with my two companions, doing my absolute best not to think about how gorgeous they both are.