"I am curious about how yours works, if there's nothing more pressing to talk about."

"Nothing more immediately pressing, although it's not a simple topic; our scholars can spend their lifetimes trying to understand it. The key underlying principle is the cultivation of spiritual energy within oneself."

"I've never heard of magic working like that."

"I've never heard of magic not working like that. Or--at least more like that than like what you describe." 

"Mmhmm. I wonder if my magic works together with yours as well as it works with itself - one of the things I can do is temporarily improve people, make them stronger or healthier, or make them smarter, a couple of ways. Those kinds of mental capability help determine how strong our spells are, depending on the type of spellcaster; mine are improved by the spell that makes me more perceptive and better at noticing the practical implications of things, and the other spell I can cast makes people better at understanding how to communicate and present themselves well; there are also spells for agility and for considering complex ideas and remembering facts, that I don't get but have a few potions for - potions are a way of storing spells to use later or for trade, making them is a special skill that I don't personally have."

"Hmm. I would say our magic benefits from--attentional capacity, and working memory; strength, though, is solely tied to the spell itself and the magical strength of the user."

"Owl's Wisdom might help, then, or you might need Fox's Cunning for it - Owl's is the one that improves my spells, attentional capacity is a component of perceptiveness, and Fox's is the one I can't do, that's better for working memory. I do have Owl's prepared, if you want to try it, I knew I'd be curious."

"It seems worth a try." 

He'll cast it, then, offering the spell as a gentle glow in his outstretched hand.

"I have Eagle's Splendor today, too," he tells Wangji while his brother considers the spell. "The one that helps with communication. If you'd like to try it later."

"...Yes."

Nod. "I'll give you some time to think about it - it helps with figuring out what things are a bad idea to say because they're offensive or unpersuasive, but not with avoiding telling someone something you didn't mean them to know, and it only lasts fifteen minutes." And he returns his attention to Xichen. "How's that feel?"

"Can I go check on something before answering that." 

"Sure, I'm not in a rush."

He sweeps off, brow furrowed. 

"Would you like to try some of my apple?"

"Mn."

He cuts off a slice and offers it to him. "There's more in storage if you like it - only for today, conjured food doesn't last very long. I can make more another time, though."

He nibbles the slice silently until Brother comes back. 

After little enough time for the Owl's spell not to have worn off he sweeps back in, looking grimmer and holding a book. 

"Something wrong?"

"Yes." Sigh. "Nothing that's reached the point where your magic seems like the best solution. Yet." 

"All right. I do have divinations prepared that'll let me check whether a plan is a good idea, if you'd like one." And he takes another bite of the apple, content to wait while Xichen works.

"Hmm. I might take you up on that at some point."

Nod. "Let me know."

Nod. "If you'd like to go to Koi Tower any time in the next few days to talk about resurrecting Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan it would be extremely convenient for me to take you."