Third Floor Common Room, Tuesday Afternoon

[bitchprince]

After completing his go at Gun Club, Arthur returned to the dorms only to realise he didn't much feel like dealing with Leto yet. He'd come up with a proper revenge later. Right now, he craved a chance to sit somewhere, to fight off the sense that was dawning in the wake of yesterday's upset. He sat, and idly considered the Teevee.

Maybe she's just afraid to lose a friend, Merlin had said, and while Arthur was not going to stretch as far as to call her that aloud, he had to admit that the expression on her face had... seemed...

It was easier, dealing with sorcerers, when all you did was distract Father and find them quick shelter elsewhere. Here, there was little escape from them. No matter what he did, they would remain, and the honest truth was that he bore them very little ill will.

Wasn't his father. He'd seen too much damage caused by it not to be wary, but...

Of course, that made him think of Liir. He wasn't going to let thought of his conduct around him make him cringe.

So he sat. Subdued. Thinking.

[[ open common room! ]]

Comments

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Camelot?" Dor asked looking interested. "I haven't heard of that kingdom. Is that in this world or somewhere else? I'm from a world called Xanth that looks remarkably like this world's Florida."

[bitchprince]

"I'm told that the country it lies in is named England here," Arthur volunteered, "Although it's... a few years past."

And if the day came that wasn't still odd, then Arthur would know he had been here for too long.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Oh, I haven't heard of the country," Dor said with a nod. "Though I'm still learning my geography of Mundania."

[bitchprince]

"Mundania," Arthur repeated, slowly. "I don't believe I've heard of that, myself."

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Oh," Dor said wincing. "Sorry. That's actually what my world calls this whole Earth place as it most of it is without magic and therefore kind of mundane. Though so far my experiences have been showing me otherwise."

[bitchprince]

Magic. Just the word he'd been dying to hear today.

"You'd be hard-pressed to call this land mundane," Arthur agreed. He found he'd avoided the topic neatly.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"I will admit this island isn't really mundane at all," Dor admitted. "Though I have to say it's interesting to see how everyone gets by without having to use magic. The ingenuity people have is amazing. I think that's one reason why my king sent me here, so I'd have a better appreciation for not only what we have at home but how other worlds work as well."

[bitchprince]

Arthur rubbed his thumb against the side of his nose. "That's fascinating," he said.

He was not going to make the same mistake thrice, but it took some work. "We get by just fine without it," he managed.

Sometimes, they really didn't, but that was hardly Dor's business.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

Dor nodded. "It's very impressive and often times more efficient than what we can do in my world," he said earnestly. "When I become king someday, I'm going to make an effort to have people learn more about engineering and other skills so we can complement our magic with it."

[bitchprince]

He paused.

"You're a member of the royal family?"

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Sort of," Dor said with small frown. "Royalty in Xanth is defined by power rather than familial lines like in some kingdoms. Since I'm the only one in my generation with magician caliber talent, I'm the next in line for the throne."

[bitchprince]

And a mage. Terrific.

"Magic is forbidden in my kingdom," he said. "You'll have to forgive me if I seem a bit wary."

His father would end him.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"It is?" Dor asked looking somber. "May I ask why?"

[bitchprince]

"My father feels that it is dangerous, untrustworthy," he said, carefully, "and I've seen it cause mostly famine, drought and illness."

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

Dor nodded in understanding. "I've seen evil magicians use their magic in a bid for power. One of my dear friends was murdered as a result and left undead for over 800 years. My world has learned the hard way that when magic is used for ill gotten gains, everyone pays the price. You and your father have a right to be wary if there is an evil magician causing you problems."

[bitchprince]

Dor was absurdly reasonable for a sorcerer.

Or at least for almost any grown sorcerer he'd met in Camelot. "Indeed," he said, carefully. "But your kingdom is based on good magic."

It wasn't an impossible concept. He wasn't nearly as vehement in his opinion as his father. But the good he'd seen done by magic was mostly done by clumsy men and women, scrambling for a life.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Possibly," Dor said with a thoughtful look. "But not necessarily. In my world magic isn't a thing of good or evil. It's mostly the person who wields it. For instance our current king was once considered evil as he tried to overthrow the kingdom over thirty years ago. He was exiled from our land and returned about ten years ago a reformed man. When the last king died he was asked to assume the throne even though there was another magician available to receive the title."

[bitchprince]

"Your world," he said, using the word very careful- he still didn't fully grasp it- "is very different from mine."

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Is the difference the magic itself?" Dor asked. "Or the people who use it?"

[bitchprince]

"Magic is a dangerous force to wield no matter what," Arthur said, cautiously. He was trying, artfully, not to contradict his father's laws while he voiced his own opinion. The healing of Guinevere's father had not been an act of evil.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Though one can say the same thing about a gun or a sword," Dor pointed out. "But I understand what you are saying, and I can respect that."

[bitchprince]

"Yes," Arthur said, tilting his chin up, "One can."

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

Dor paused a moment looking thoughtfully at Arthur. "If you don't mind me asking," he began cautiously, "Are you in line for the throne of your kingdom?"

[bitchprince]

Hm. "I am the Crown Prince, yes," Arthur said, tilting his head at Dor curiously.

[talks2objects.livejournal.com]

"Have you ever... I don't know. Have you ever had any doubts about becoming the king?" he asked looking hesitant.