A stroll, of a sort.

[Sargon]

Honestly, it was boredom that had driven him here to this point. His chores had been mostly completed, and he refused to be around so many insufferable children for so long. Most of them were completely dull, and he didn't want to approach them while they were in groups. Nothing good would come of it, he knew.

And so Sargon found himself floating out here, the large and dense cloud of dark grey smoke drifting bored on the wind, heading down towards the gates. He had not a particular destination in mind, just looking for a bit of amusement for a passive mind.

He was out for a stroll, of a sort.

[Leon Barner]

The damage done to Leon's face several months had finally healed completely. In the time it took for the burns to fade, he had striven simply to avoid interacting the other students or teachers if it wasn't necessary. He was beginning to simmer down now though. The cap on his abilities had presented a challenge for him, but he felt he was beginning to get the hang of working around it.

Leon had been flying a ways above the castle gates. He was focused on a ball of energy he'd formed which he was juggling between his hands. He could keep it going as long as he fed it energy whenever he touched it, but it took a lot of concentration. It was a very effective way to distract himself anyway.

Once he missed a beat and the energy disappeared, Leon lowered himself towards the gate. He stood crouched on the gate and stretched his wings, looking everything like a gargoyle. He was facing away from the castle now, so any smoke on that side went unnoticed.

[Sargon]

It was curious when a form descended down from the sky. Sargon had not been paying much particular attention upwards, so it was of some interest when what appeared to be a young boy with wings perched atop the gate.

The mass of smoke - really having nothing better to do - let itself drift up, creeping along the posts of the gate. Tendrils snaked ahead as the qarin studied the other's form. Silently, on the other top of the gate that wasn't occupied, the smoke started gathering. It, clumsily at first, started molding itself. To start, it was just dense, but then it started to take a shape rather like that of the still boy. It was not a perfect mimic, as the wind disturbed the smoke occasionally, but the general shape of head, torso, legs, wings were all there as the other had them arranged.

[Leon Barner]

Leon only noticed the gathering of smoke once it drifted up to his eye level at the gate. He watched it for a moment as it began to mold itself, only somewhat interesting. Once it became obvious what shape the smoke was taking, Leon's eyebrows furrowed.

He turned his body slightly and gave a flap of wings. He purposely extended his left wing across the gap separating himself and the smoke doppelganger, trying to throw off its efforts. He didn't know who or what it was, but he didn't appreciate that it was trying to take his form. Following the original motion, Leon lifted off the gate, dipping a bit before rising into the air. Once he was at a comfortable height, he circle back around several feet above the gate and looked back down towards the smoke had been.

[Sargon]

As Leon turned, so did the smokey mimic. It lifted it's wing in the same motion, but rather than creating any wind, it's form was disrupted. The smoke billowed out with the buffet, losing shape despite trying to maintain it. It twirled in an almost bubbling motion as the boy took to the air.

Silently, Sargon studied him. It seemed he had found his entertainment after all. The Qarin figured that being near the other would just simply earn him another gust of wind, so instead he stayed above the gate and tried to reconstruct himself again. The smoke formed a being similar in shape to Leon, with wings extended. At first, it was just a generic human shape, but the more Sargon looked at Leon, the more the smoke started to add details, like the bulk of clothing, wisps of hair. Eventually, white eyes appeared, still just as smokey. The face was turned upwards, staring up at the boy, and a white grin stretched across its otherwise unfeatured face.

"Hullo." The voice was deep, growling, and rough in a smooth way.

[Leon Barner]

The thing was still try to look like him. Leon could feel his frustration steadily increase with each new detail added to the form of the smoke. He was so tired of this place. The teachers, the students, whatever or whoever this person was, the sheer of amount of nothing to do. He was sick of it. That's what was driving him mad.

Leon stopped, reaching a peak in his flight then letting himself fall again. He gained some momentum this way the simply used his wings to guide him towards the smokey figure. He hoped it took a good amount of for the smoke to mold itself like that. If it wanted to be obnoxious then he'd simply keep throwing it off. Maybe it would tire, but he wouldn't. "Goodbye."

Once past, Leon would continue forward, almost as though he were going to leave the area altogether. He wouldn't though. He'd been here first.

[Sargon]

Sargon watched the boy, but as the other started towards him, there was little he could do. To be perfectly honest, this was one of the first times he was ever trying to look like a human...ish shape. He didn't think he could move it without destroying some of the features. And so, with naught else to do, the qarin stood and took the wind on as the winged boy flew past overhead.

It disrupted him thoroughly, billowing out what would have been an imposter-Leon's head and shoulders. Having lost this crucial aspect, Sargon let the rest melt. The smoke flooded down and out, rising again to gather and twist at the top of the gates. It twisted and sat, perched, in an undefined blob shape as if it had taken Leon's old spot for itself in victory. Still, despite the lack of features, there was a strange sense of it watching the other boy's form flying, as if it were expecting something. Or perhaps expecting nothing at all.

[Leon Barner]

As Leon flew past, he looked over his shoulder to see that he'd successfully interrupted the smoke's form again. It seemed that wouldn't be a problem then. It seemed that the smoke's game was just a wasted effort. It was simple enough for him to end it.

Leon steadily worked his way back around to the gate, not in any hurry at all. Having already forgotten about the position he'd held at the gate, Leon failed to recognize any special meaning behind the smoke's to take it up for itself. Even if he had, he would have noted it as a false sense of victory. The position was neither something he cared about, nor something the smoke had earned. Any sense that he was being watched went ignored. The smoke was no longer trying to mold itself to look like him, so Leon no longer cared.

[Sargon]

He was neither surprised nor disappointed. Such was the benefit when you weren't particularly keen on any particular outcome. Still, Sargon might admit to being a bit pleased that his entertainment had not left him so soon. He watched the boy silently as an idea formed steadily. Perhaps...creating a more human form for himself might not be such a bad idea? Well, as close as he could get to it anyway. It would really be no more than what he had been trying to do in taking over Leon's shape, but it might be...beneficial in some cases. Yes, indeed it might.

Th smoke formed itself up, amassing again to a denser cloud. It molded and shaped, at first looking to be something much like Leon, but it changed slightly. It's dress, from what one could tell from the silhouette, was not consistent with the other boy's. That, and rather than being of shaggier hair, a smoky mohawk crowned him. Still it had white eyes, and not much else in the way of features. To say it was of basic form would be most accurate. The newly formed man raised a smoky hand that lost its shape upon moving, only to reform in front of his face as for inspection. A low, rumbling humming noise was emitted as in contemplation. Well, it would need some work, yes, but it s a start.

Sargon's smokily formed head tilted up to Leon above once again.

"Thank you for the idea." It was said in monotone, uncaring if the boy was even really listening.

[Leon Barner]

Leon could feel his anger rising as the smoke seemed to form itself to look like him again. He calmed down as it began to deviate though. The mohawk was the first obvious sign. Leon didn't particularly care if it wanted to look like a person - hell, if he was an amorphous cloud of smoke he'd want to look like a person too - as long as it didn't try to look like this person.

He pocketed his hands as he flew over what was supposed to be the smoke's head. This time he didn't fly so close that it would be likely to disturb it. If he did, it wasn't intentional. "Whatever." He hadn't even done anything to give any ideas. In fact, he would probably say that his actions had shown the flaw in the smoke's idea. All it took was a bit of wind to destroy its shape.

[Sargon]

As the boy flew near again, what smoke formed his head wavered slightly, but quickly melded back together. There was really nothing to be done about his solidity. Well, that is, in this form. Sargon watched the boy overhead with a slightly narrowed gaze.

"You're not very social are you?" It wasn't really a question. "Won't you entertain an old form such as myself for even a small while? It could be to your great benefit." The smooth and low tones of his voice were rumbling persuasively, practically cooing. His attention was rapt on the boy, as if waiting for a particular movement or moment he seemed ideal.

[Leon Barner]

Leon flew casually now, practically gliding and giving only the few flaps he needed to actually stay airborne. He was only half listening to smoke, even when the possibility of a benefit was brought up. At this point he didn't truly think there was much anyone could do to appease him. Causing trouble hadn't yielded any good results and he doubted any would come from "entertaining" this thing either.

Still, he'd ask, and his tone would suggested that he was only slightly interested. "Benefit how?"

[Sargon]

The smoke mass hummed as if politely thinking. He was getting an odd sort of feeling from the boy, as if he wouldn't entirely mind doing something bad, but wasn't particularly persuadable. Sargon wasn't sure if this would be a wasted effort.
The small question had him giving a small smile, for all appearances cordially pleasant.

"I can, essentially, grant desires. Merely ask something of me, and I shall do my beset for only a small trinket in return." He seemed to pause for contemplation. Or perhaps for dramatic effect. "Have you never heard of a genie?"

[Leon Barner]

Leon rolled the words around in his mind for a moments. No he still didn't think the smoke could give him what he really wanted. However, he was being driven insane with each passing month. His break from company had kept him out of trouble the past few months, but they'd also been the longest months since he'd first come to the academy.

Now that he thought about it, he wasn't doing anything in particular right this moment either, and it didn't seem like the smoke was either. Maybe they were equally bored. Maybe the smoke was just trying to make the months go by faster as well. Fine. He'd humor the thing.

Leon flew in one final circle before descending towards the gate again. Once his feet were on the ground he retracted his wings and leaned back against the fence, arms crossed in front of him. "Smoke. I get it. Where's your lamp then?" It was said as a joke. Stereotypes were a rather effective way of asking questions. "I doubt you could get me what I wanted anyway."

[Sargon]

He waited patiently. What else was there to do, really? The smoky figure started upwards, tracking the boy's progress as he descended. It was when the other finally touched ground and reclined that the smoke shot forward. It stopped just before the boy and the figure of a man reformed with a wide grin and seemingly sharp teeth that were perhaps a bit more solid and monstrous than before. He loomed in what was probably meant to be an intimidatingly eager manner. It was almost as if he were just waiting for the word to consume the other.

"It's back at the castle." Sargon commented idly, conversationally. "But don't doubt me yet. What I can do depends on what you give me to work with. I can only give as much as you're willing. And don't forget..." A smoky hand raised three fingers to the level of the grin. Well, if they were playing off stereotypes and childish fancies...

[Leon Barner]

The sudden fast movement of the smoke was enough to catch Leon of guard, his hand taking up a position almost like a cowboy in a standoff preparing to draw. Then he remembered the being in front of him was only smoke. There was nothing either of them could do to the other no matter what freaky form it took.

The guy actually had a lamp? For some reason Leon found this information to be disappointing. The three wish limit only made it more so. He recrossed his arms, relaxing again. "So what do you want, then?"

[Sargon]

Sargon admitted it, he liked the way Leon had tensed, and that had been the point of the fast movement in the first place. Here was here for entertainment, after all. His grin stretched wider up the smoky face's cheek, the smoke providing no limitations. He made a slow clicking in the back of his throat.

"Tsk, tsk tsk..." He chuckled. "I want you to want. Simple as that. Surely there is something you would wish for, even if it's small. I'm just bored." His face had no real features, but somehow you could just tell that if he did his eyebrows would have raised and an innocently conniving look would have come over him.

[Leon Barner]

Leon's expression changed into that of a scowl. What was with that grin? And the sound it was making. Actually. Wasn't it smoke? He would have thought that a person made entirely from smoke wouldn't even have the necessary muscles to make such a sound.

The thing reminded him of one of Feign's imagined creatures. He'd lost sleep to those. Leon glared at for a moment longer before pushing off the fence and summoning his wings again. He'd walk directly forward, giving a light flap of his wings in an attempt to dispel the smoke as much as possible, however he wouldn't take to the air.

"Well then I wish for you to never find entertainment."

[Sargon]

A moment after the wish was made, the smoke seemed to melt apart, being blown in the wing's wake but completely not even trying to stay together. The horrid thing though, was the noise it made. A loud, sudden, cry burst out. It was rough and low pitched, sounding like a screech and a roar, pained and angry. Livid.

The smoke shot around, twisting around Leon to condense over him. A large, horned head reared out of the thick smoke, white eyes and black smoky mane blazing. Four thick pillars of dark grey smoke curled into muscular legs, each adorned with a large gold band, a large tail whipping out behind the newly forming beast. Jaws were agape and snarling, baring sharp and jagged teeth.

"Take that back!"

[Leon Barner]

Leon turned quickly to face the inhuman sound. It reminded him ever further of Feign's creatures, and now his methods worked against him, making him feel as though he were waking from a nightmare. By the time he saw the gold, the expression of panic was only barely contained.

He collected himself quickly though, not even acknowledging the creature's demand when it was given. "And I wish for you to keep ten feet away from me at all times." Leon would relax again once the wish was granted, once those gold cuffs were a safe distance away. Genie indeed.. He'd said three wishes hadn't he? Well, Leon still had one left if that was the case. In all honesty, he hadn't actually expected the wish to be granted just like. As he thought it over, a chuckle escaped. Well, it sucked to be that genie.

[Sargon]

The roaring sound vibrated again, coming up the beast's throat nearly visible as the smoky skin shook with it. It seemed that the body of him though was slowly dissipate back into smoke, but the chuckle had the smoke rearing back up, solidifying. The brat thought his plight funny-! Sargon's jaws widened and he pulled back his head as if in preparation to snap at the boy fiercely. Just as he did though, his intent clear to harm, the gold cuffs burst into smoke. As if his feet had been pulled out from underneath him, the large beast collapsed forward, bulk likewise bursting into thick wisps before hitting the ground and shot back 10 feet from Leon.

When the body of the monster reformed at the distance, he looked just as angry, but more sullenly rather than murderously. His head and tail were held a little lower, jaws shut firmly, and he looked liked he despised absolutely everything in that moment.

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