the self-knower

[lifes_sake]

Vague and grandiose chat about motivated capitalism take up the rest of the wizards' evening. Plans are made for Cam to learn about worldgates the following (skipped from school with Renée's kind accomplicehood) day and, assuming he catches on quickly enough, to go to New York and meet Jenny and talk about her operating as their business proxy.

Presently it's bedtime, and Cam goes to his room and Matilda and Jellybean go to theirs and Cam has the chance to ask Grace what on earth she meant.

"Well," Grace says, whispering, "you've been holding off on labeling because you're only fourteen, but people stabilize at different ages, don't they? And as near as I can tell you've been stable for almost a year now. Not on either, but on whichever. I think you're just as likely to get a crush on Jellybean as Matilda and vice-versa, and I don't think it's because you're still undeclared, I think you're just wired that way."

Cam considers this. "Okay," he says. "I can live with that."

"I should hope so," says Grace, and Cam laughs, and he goes to sleep.

He's still on a sleep cycle appropriate to school, so he may be up before Jellybean and Matilda in the morning.

Comments

[lifes_sake]

Cam blinks, and pays attention. He doesn't interrupt Jellybean; he does not yet know how to do that productively instead of distracting the other wizard into making the potato sing songs or write the Great American Novel or something instead.

[pythbox]

Mostly he's just talking to it, in an entirely casual way. And he gently, casually suggests that the potato take on this or that quality... and it does, as easily as that.

[lifes_sake]

Cam peers at Jellybean's potato, and at his own potato, and he attempts to mimic the style, just in case it'll work.

[pythbox]

Nope.

[lifes_sake]

Dangit.

He decides to wait to see if Jellybean gets around to more useful changes than darkened color of his own accord before attempting to prod him into it. He carries on with his own approach to the project, and takes a bit of a listen to what Matilda's doing between attempts.

[pythbox]

Matilda is systematically grilling her pill about its molecular composition and physical structure.

Jellybean convinces the potato to have a nutrient balance closer to the ideal ratio for human consumption. He doesn't say it like that, though, so it might take some listening to figure out that's what he's up to.

[lifes_sake]

Grace is helping, so Cam figures it out eventually. He doesn't interrupt. He does, however, give up on his potato - since Jellybean is making more progress and there's so much more to do - and get a grain of rice.

[pythbox]

Rice, for whatever reason, is more receptive to his suggestions than potatoes.

[lifes_sake]

Okay, that's interesting, if they just vary in cooperativeness. Cam tries other available plant-based foods, finds rice the most suggestible, and sets about convincing the rice to do useful things, taking notes as he goes on what he's trying and what works.

[pythbox]

"So are we gonna find somewhere to plant these?" wonders Jellybean.

[lifes_sake]

"Yeah. Arizona's not really great for it, but I guess if we can make them take root in the backyard here, that's a good test of how they'll do in, like, the Sahara, compared to if we went someplace cooler?" says Cam. "So there's here, it's not like the sand in the yard is doing anything that Renée'll be annoyed if we mess up."

[pythbox]

"Cool," he says agreeably.

[lifes_sake]

"How's the painkiller behaving?" Cam inquires of Matilda.

[pythbox]

"I haven't tried anything yet," she says absently. "Still learning."

[lifes_sake]

He lets her be.

When he's out of ideas on the rice, he goes and puts it in the back yard and pours water on it and sternly instructs it to grow.

[pythbox]

The rice sprouts obediently.

[lifes_sake]

Good rice.

It'll take a while to get longer term data on how tasty it is, of course. He goes in and works with the next most cooperative item, a grain of quinoa that Renée bought as a form of protein for vegetarian experimentation, and gives it a similar treatment.

[pythbox]

Jellybean is still improving his potato.

[lifes_sake]

Exciting Tedious Wizard Science goes on until there is a row of nine sprouts of various things trying their darndest to grow in the sand.

It is now time for Cam to win a million bucks. His original form got a positive reply.

"Matilda, are you coming too?"

[pythbox]

"Sure," she says cheerfully.

[lifes_sake]

Off they go to the worldgate locus. "If we can't find one on the other end, we can just gate from anywhere and be dead tired after, right?" Cam confirms before setting up the gate.

[pythbox]

"Yeah," says Jellybean, "but we've never had to emergency-gate from Earth."

[lifes_sake]

"Yeah, not expecting it, just would rather be dead tired than a thousand dollars in the hole if something happens and I need a last-minute plane ticket. Invisibility time."

Invisibility: check!

Gate setup is a go!

Is that the office of James Randi? Well, there's James Randi, anyway.

Cam steps through.

[pythbox]

Jellybean and Matilda both follow, likewise concealed.

[lifes_sake]

Cam clears his throat.

"Hi, Mr. Randi, I don't know if you answer your own email or not but I'm here for my million dollars," says Cam.

Mr. Randi blinks slowly.