New Hampshire does not, in fact, inspire anything in him, and Sunny shrugs casually about it. The idea of "school" is foreign, too, and while Sunny knows it's associated with education, only the nobility could get it. He does wonder at Nadine being a teacher, though; maybe they won't struggle too badly with this magic stuff after all.
Sunny nods along to the rationalisation. So far, what she's saying makes sense to him, even though in his own mind he ends up processing it less scientifically and more... well, spiritually.
"My teacher told me about qi when I was still learning to fight," he provides, one hand lifting from his folded arms to scratch lightly at the line of his jaw. "The flow of energy in living things. You can train your muscles, but every physical creature has limits-- energy doesn't."
It's a more abstract interpretation, Sunny knows. As a boy he'd dismissed it as a load of crap, even if he performed all his exercises anyway. The years since have taught him much, though, and while he may not say so out loud, he knows qi is real as much as he knows he needs air to breathe.
Once again, he lifts his head to look at the apprentices practising with fire. The more experienced ones can conjure flame in their hands without so much of a movement, but the novices seem to have their own stances-- not the basic one on the scroll, granted, but still positions he suspects work better for their styles.
"Maybe the physical movement helps with believing." Sunny's brows furrow. "It's... new, to think you can make fire with your hands, right? And that forms a block in your brain." He taps lightly at his temple. "Maybe we use the body to help the mind adjust." He gestures to some of the novice mages. "And when the mind accepts it" -- then gestures to the more experienced ones -- "you don't need the body as a guide any more."
no subject
Sunny nods along to the rationalisation. So far, what she's saying makes sense to him, even though in his own mind he ends up processing it less scientifically and more... well, spiritually.
"My teacher told me about qi when I was still learning to fight," he provides, one hand lifting from his folded arms to scratch lightly at the line of his jaw. "The flow of energy in living things. You can train your muscles, but every physical creature has limits-- energy doesn't."
It's a more abstract interpretation, Sunny knows. As a boy he'd dismissed it as a load of crap, even if he performed all his exercises anyway. The years since have taught him much, though, and while he may not say so out loud, he knows qi is real as much as he knows he needs air to breathe.
Once again, he lifts his head to look at the apprentices practising with fire. The more experienced ones can conjure flame in their hands without so much of a movement, but the novices seem to have their own stances-- not the basic one on the scroll, granted, but still positions he suspects work better for their styles.
"Maybe the physical movement helps with believing." Sunny's brows furrow. "It's... new, to think you can make fire with your hands, right? And that forms a block in your brain." He taps lightly at his temple. "Maybe we use the body to help the mind adjust." He gestures to some of the novice mages. "And when the mind accepts it" -- then gestures to the more experienced ones -- "you don't need the body as a guide any more."