Hilda lets out a whine, forehead meeting the textbook in front of her with a thunk.
When she had asked Jayce for enchantment tutoring, the amount of homework and actual reading she'd had to do wasn't what she'd had in mind. Nor did she think that she'd have this difficult of a time trying to understand the sheer amount of information she was trying to force into her squishy brain. All she wanted to do was make functional jewelry that would protect the people she cared about was that too much to ask? In reality, she should have known this wouldn't happen overnight; this was, after all, maybe only the third or forth session they'd had together. But Hilda was used to instant gratification and got antsy when she wasn't given that.
"Jayce," her whine sounds tearful as she presses her forehead harder into the textbook. Maybe that would help her understand whatever concept he was trying to walk her through. If experience has taught her anything however, it probably won't. The anxious voice that had followed her for years stirs, stoking her embarrassment and insecurities. "I don't think I can do this. All of this is way too hard. I should just leave this to people like you and Viktor."
Jayce is an academic so homework is second nature to him, which is probably why he took to magic so easily. Not everything he learned was from academic magic texts, he was trained personally by Himeka in healing, but when it came to enchantments that is what he needed. Kell snuck him some books and that is how he and Viktor became skilled at them.
He knows it's not for everyone though. Hilda is not alone in getting stuck in all the constant words and the practice required to just do the same spell over and over. He couldn't help but revert a little to Heimerdinger energy when he taught; for all his faults (and there were many), his former mentor was a great teacher, from his experience.
"Hilda, you're doing great, I promise. I didn't know how to do any magic before I got here. It doesn't come easily to some of us." Jayce did take to it pretty well, but that was because his passion for magic has always existed. He created Hextech to have even a little taste of magic in his hands, although it would never be real there. He was determined to become a mage here.
"I'm just trying to set you up with the basic knowledge first, but honestly half of it is practice doing the real magic." It's that knowing the words and the background make the likelihood of messing it up lesser. But it seems like she could probably use less words and more actions.
Jayce brought with them a few pieces that he created himself. He is not a jeweler but he's managed to make some decent bracelets with Luna metal for people. He also brought a few of his knives. All the enchantments were stripped off them. "Here let's actually try one."
They're in his lab at the moment since it is a safer environment than most for experiments. Although his first ideas aren't unsafe. "So you have to memorize the spell, but a lot of it is about confidence when you say it. Let's try a protection from tear. We'll put it on this bracelet." He brought several so if it goes wrong, they can keep trying.
He points to the spell and sets the one next to her. "When you succeed, you'll feel it in your gut, like it has flowed through you."
As far as Hilda can recall, Jayce has yet to experience the joys (spoilers: there's no joy) on being on the receiving end of her crocodile tears.
To be clear, that's a good thing. A younger Hilda had employed them in stressful times with tutors she didn't like or subjects she didn't want to learn. Thankfully, she likes Jayce, he's been nothing but incredibly patient with her, and this is a subject she wanted to learn. At least she had thought she wanted to. Her tears have more to do with the frustration she's feeling towards herself along with a hint of laziness at having to put actual work into this. All of it combines into the sound of genuine distress in her voice - a dead giveaway that she might actually be on the verge of tears this time.
But Jayce's patience and kind tone is enough to convince her to hold off if just for a moment longer. She sniffles, rising her head from the book to look at him and then the bracelet. A beat later she's nodding even though she looks incredibly reluctant to do so. Her hand hovers above the bracelet, gaze fixed on the spell book. It's clear she doesn't believe what she's saying even though there's an immense amount of concentration being focused on the words being said so she doesn't stumble on them. When she reaches the end of the incantation, the bracelet lays on the table not doing much of anything. She visibly wilts. "That didn't work, did it?"
Jayce knows tears of frustration, he's been there more times than once. He had to go through it alone for many years as he couldn't talk to anyone about Hextech, his research wasn't legal. It wasn't until Viktor that he was able to bounce ideas off of someone else and that is why it ended up succeeding. He'll stay confident enough for both of them. He's good at that.
"Not this time. Hilda, you're doing better than you think. Do you think I just got good at everything right away? Believe it or not, there is a lot of effort that went into these." Jayce is willing to make fun of himself and also note things like the fact he is pointing at his bicep. Which is bigger than some people's heads. Most people looking at him would think he's a body builder, but he's really just a blacksmith, as everyone knows here. He built things and that naturally comes with hard work and training.
"I have seen you fierce and determined and accomplish a great deal when you believe in yourself. You just have to treat this bracelet and magic like if you were ordering Sylvain and Claude around." Jayce points at one of them and he firmly says the spell and he can feel it in himself, as he said, and there seems to be a touch of a glimmer on the bracelet. He sets that one to the side.
"I always see it as magic being part of us now. In our blood, somehow, when it brought us here. It is naturally flowing, and that means you are meant to be able to dot his."
"I don't know. I feel like you were just one of those people who were great at everything you tried," she says with a watery laugh. "Don't go ruining my image of you now, Jayce!" she says bumping his shoulder. It's said in jest of course – she appreciates the joke at his own expense.
Hearing him share that he's had difficulties too soothes the disappointment, or at least it does marginally. Watching him effortlessly enchant one of the bracelets, she has to steel herself against feeling discouraged. The reassurance, coupled with the comparison to bossing Sylvain and Claude certainly helps too and her lips curl genuinely at that.
She wonders briefly when he says that magic is a part of their blood if Sylvain and Claude had told him about their Crests. Jayce hadn't said that explicitly of course, but it begs the question. Hilda has never been particularly cagey about her Crest, but she could see the pair of them not being so forthcoming even with someone like Jayce.
She trusts him though just like how she trusted Natasha enough to tell her. There's a bit of a self deprecating lilt to her laugh. "You say that but having a Crest didn't really help me with magic back home. And that's practically the equivalent of having magic in your blood."
"If only! I've always been good at thinking, but not always great at doing." Thinking is more about speculation and ideas. He envisioned Hextech when no one would have imagined it possible and he worked for years to see if it was possible, he could see it so clearly. But putting it into actual practice was far more difficult. It took Viktor to complete the work. As smart as Jayce is, sometimes it isn't enough.
Jayce does know about the Crests. There had been some discussion around them when he was asked to make Hilda's weapon. He doesn't know the exact details entirely, but he doesn't look surprised when she uses that word or confused. He knows what she means, which can probably tell her this isn't the first time he heard the word.
"Well not all magic comes naturally. I've learned a lot of spells here, but I feel like only some parts have taken. Enchantments and healing were easy, but even though I know the words, I've never really been great at fire." Jayce knows enough to give them light or warmth, but he's not sure why it feels less easy. It could be because he finds it more damaging, and he is resistant to offensive types of spells.
"I think maybe focus on your motivation. Why do you want to learn these? What are you hoping to do with them?" He assumes it'll be to help her loved ones in one way or another, whether it's making money or things for them, so keying into her reasons could help.
She knows that he's being honest with her. Jayce doesn't strike her as the type of person to lie to her just to make her feel better about her situation, but she has to joke all the same because really, how else is she meant to react to pure kindness? "Now I know you're just trying to make me feel better."
Hilda can't help but feel something akin to relief when Jayce admits without saying as much that he's heard about the Crests. It's a good thing too - it saves her some effort from having to explain a concept that she's certain she wouldn't do any justice explaining. Best to leave it to the boys. "Some of my friends had better luck with magic that we called Faith spells. They were more aligned with healing too which I guess makes sense since a lot of them prayed to the Goddess pretty regularly." That is to imply, more than she ever did. But then again, Hilda's downfall when it came to magic had always been a mixture of laziness and anxiety instead of lack of faith.
She mulls over his question a moment, worrying her bottom lip. "I want to make something useful. I used to make jewelry back home but it never did anything apart from look pretty - which, don't get me wrong, I still love doing. But after everything that happened," her voice trials off for a moment before finding it again, "I just want to make sure that people who wear the things I make can be safe."
Jayce is one of the worst liars out there so he wouldn't waste his energy unless necessary. He is comically bad at it because everything in him wants to be sincere. "Ask Viktor, I'm sure he has a list of things I was bad at first." It's not entirely true, Viktor is fairly blind to Jayce's flaws too, but he can be brutally honest when asked. Jayce won't mind if it will make her feel better. If he has a list, it would probably be alphabetized and itemized just for impact.
"I always wanted to use magic, my entire life I dreamed of it. It wasn't possible for me in my world so I made technology and magic together. It was the closest I could get." And Jayce loves Hextech. It is his greatest invention and the potential for it is endless. What he managed to accomplish in his search for magic changed his world. But it was still never going to be him being magic. Not until coming here.
Jayce nods as she answers and then puts a new bracelet in front of her. "I personally think magic comes from the heart more than the mind, so what I want you to do is think about someone you care for. Keep them in your mind and think of this spell as a shield you are creating around them."
The look Hilda gives him is one of utter, flat disbelief. She doesn't know Viktor a fraction as much as Jayce does, but she knows him well enough to know that the likelihood of that particular scenario panning out is unlikely. That and the last thing Hilda is set on doing is going around finding out what other people aren't so great at in order to build herself up.
She listens to his recounting of his previous desires and aspirations from home and gives him a little laugh. "You know, it's funny. I know that magic and technology are two different things, but after arriving here and seeing all of the technology and the things you and Viktor make together? It feels like magic to me." They only ever had the traditional sort of magic at home. She had never taken it for granted, but with technology in front of her as something tangible that everyone could use - that had been more of a surprise and wonder to her.
There's a look of doubt, or perhaps it's mild panic on Hilda's face as the new bracelet is set in front of her. After a moment though her hands hover above it the bracelet and her eyes gently close. She calls to mind how helpless she felt not being able to protect the ones that had been taken, how terrified she had been when she had seen Petra's form swallowed by the crush of snow in the mountains. A different emotion arises from the swirl of despairing ones and it's that firece desire to protect her loved ones that emerges.
It feels like a rush of warmth rushing from her hands into the bracelet - not so dissimilar to the feeling of when she's able to cast a healing spell from home. There's another beat before she cautiously opens an eye looking at Jayce first instead of the bracelet. Her breathe leaves mouth in a rush as she nervously asks, "I don't want to jinx it but did it work?"
"They are similar. Our inventions are steeped in both, here and at home."
The arcane crystals to power everything, but their designs are purely technology-based. None of their inventions here really are magic first, they're creation first, and then magic on top of it. They haven't fully moved outside of that, apparently, but whatever works. It's why he designs the jewelry first and then puts the enchantments on.
Jayce watches her and he can almost see her resolve slip into place, the moment between uncertainty to force. He thinks she's going to get it this time, it's just a feeling. He can feel the power coming off of it when he puts his hand close, but it's much better for her to witness it than agree.
"Let's find out." He picks up the bracelet and puts it to the side so he can put his body between her and it if this goes wrong. He doesn't intend on doing a dangerous spell, but you never know. And Jayce is now a mage, like he's always dreamed, so he's very cautious. They picked a defensive enchantment with metal that particularly protects against magic.
Jayce casts a fire spell and shoots it at the bracelet, so they can both see for themselves that it zaps at it and seems to be absorbed right into the metal itself. No harm is done to it, instead it only seems to glow afterward, and probably is warm to the touch. "See, you got it. I'll try a different angle."
Jayce does a wind spell instead this time and this time it doesn't absorb, it does bounce right off the bracelet and rustle all the pages and their hair in the room, but clearly whoever would be holding it would be protected from all of it.
Hilda had asked the question but it still seems to come as a s shock that Jayce is suddenly reaching for the bracelet so that he can test it. That's the only way either of them would ever really know that it worked after all - but logic usually had a difficult time winning against someone who was already so worried about something not working.
Her hand reaches out a beat too late to try and snatch the bracelet away from his touch but it's too late, leaving her to watch helplessly as he begins his testing.
The first blast of fire magic into the bracelet is met with baited breath - and admittedly, Hilda can't help but watch from between her fingers. Her hands over her eyes have less to do with the fact that magic is being shot at an object, and more to do with not wanting to see a misshapen lump of metal because her spell failed to work.
And somehow miraculously, it doesn't. Jayce is a relentless worker and teacher unlike his student. Before Hilda can even suggest that they maybe take a break, wouldn't tea be nice right about now? Wind is rushing around them. The expression on Hilda's face is stunned, as if struggling to figure out what exactly had just transpired in front of her. Slowly, her hands lower from her face as she stares at the bracelet before back at Jayce.
Bright patches of pink slowly begin to colour her cheeks as she hesitantly asks, "You didn't just put a shield spell in there when you picked it up to make me feel better, did you?" It's a ridiculous notion and one that she's certain Jayce wouldn't do, but it's the first question that manages to make it past her lips.
Jayce is very much a 'let's just do it and see how it goes!' type of scientist. It isn't always obvious at first sight, since he seems like such a grounded individual, but this is the man who imagined a type of technology that had never been done before. Even at a dangerous risk of explosion. He is prepared to shield her though in case anything goes wrong, but there's nothing better than physical proof of something working!
"I would never!" He laughs at her question and then moves to pick it up, handing it over to her. She will feel that it is warm to the touch from the fire, but otherwise still seems to be a harmless bracelet. She did it. Jayce grins at her, as proud as if it was him doing it for the first time. As she's his student. He knows this is how it felt for Himeka when she got him here.
"This is yours." Jayce made it but now symbolically it is more than a simple piece of jewelry. "The first object you enchanted successfully. You have to keep it." He reaches out to take her hand, hers little compared to his, but he's a gentle giant and his squeeze is exactly that, gentle. "See. You can do anything you put your mind to, Hilda."
There's a hesitation that reaches through Hilda's body as she slowly curls her fingers around the bracelet. It's warm to the touch, comforting and a symbol of her determination to keep those important to her safe even if she couldn't physically do that herself.
To probably many of the Summoned that used magic on a regular basis, something like this probably would have been relatively easy. An action that they could do with their eyes closed or without breaking so much of an anxious sweat. Her laziness bled into the mentality that she shouldn't bother trying because what if she failed? But on the odd occasion that she did try and succeed in spite of herself, what then?
Jayce's hand curling around hers with a comforting squeeze draws her away from her thoughts and her attention back to him. Her eyes begin to mist. It's difficult for her to determine if it's Jayce's words, the reassuring comfort from the gentle squeeze, his patience or a combination of all three that cause her to do so - but regardless, she has to squeeze her eyes shut in an attempt to get her emotions back in check.
After she swallows the initial lump in her throat she sniffles, giving his hand a squeeze back in return. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves now. This just one bracelet," she starts with a watery laugh, "I really appreciate it, Jayce. I wouldn't have gotten even this far without you. I don't know how I'm going to repay you and Viktor for being so patient with me."
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no subject
When she had asked Jayce for enchantment tutoring, the amount of homework and actual reading she'd had to do wasn't what she'd had in mind. Nor did she think that she'd have this difficult of a time trying to understand the sheer amount of information she was trying to force into her squishy brain. All she wanted to do was make functional jewelry that would protect the people she cared about was that too much to ask? In reality, she should have known this wouldn't happen overnight; this was, after all, maybe only the third or forth session they'd had together. But Hilda was used to instant gratification and got antsy when she wasn't given that.
"Jayce," her whine sounds tearful as she presses her forehead harder into the textbook. Maybe that would help her understand whatever concept he was trying to walk her through. If experience has taught her anything however, it probably won't. The anxious voice that had followed her for years stirs, stoking her embarrassment and insecurities. "I don't think I can do this. All of this is way too hard. I should just leave this to people like you and Viktor."
SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TIME IS FAKE UGH
He knows it's not for everyone though. Hilda is not alone in getting stuck in all the constant words and the practice required to just do the same spell over and over. He couldn't help but revert a little to Heimerdinger energy when he taught; for all his faults (and there were many), his former mentor was a great teacher, from his experience.
"Hilda, you're doing great, I promise. I didn't know how to do any magic before I got here. It doesn't come easily to some of us." Jayce did take to it pretty well, but that was because his passion for magic has always existed. He created Hextech to have even a little taste of magic in his hands, although it would never be real there. He was determined to become a mage here.
"I'm just trying to set you up with the basic knowledge first, but honestly half of it is practice doing the real magic." It's that knowing the words and the background make the likelihood of messing it up lesser. But it seems like she could probably use less words and more actions.
Jayce brought with them a few pieces that he created himself. He is not a jeweler but he's managed to make some decent bracelets with Luna metal for people. He also brought a few of his knives. All the enchantments were stripped off them. "Here let's actually try one."
They're in his lab at the moment since it is a safer environment than most for experiments. Although his first ideas aren't unsafe. "So you have to memorize the spell, but a lot of it is about confidence when you say it. Let's try a protection from tear. We'll put it on this bracelet." He brought several so if it goes wrong, they can keep trying.
He points to the spell and sets the one next to her. "When you succeed, you'll feel it in your gut, like it has flowed through you."
TIME IS A SOUP!! don't you worry 💕
To be clear, that's a good thing. A younger Hilda had employed them in stressful times with tutors she didn't like or subjects she didn't want to learn. Thankfully, she likes Jayce, he's been nothing but incredibly patient with her, and this is a subject she wanted to learn. At least she had thought she wanted to. Her tears have more to do with the frustration she's feeling towards herself along with a hint of laziness at having to put actual work into this. All of it combines into the sound of genuine distress in her voice - a dead giveaway that she might actually be on the verge of tears this time.
But Jayce's patience and kind tone is enough to convince her to hold off if just for a moment longer. She sniffles, rising her head from the book to look at him and then the bracelet. A beat later she's nodding even though she looks incredibly reluctant to do so. Her hand hovers above the bracelet, gaze fixed on the spell book. It's clear she doesn't believe what she's saying even though there's an immense amount of concentration being focused on the words being said so she doesn't stumble on them. When she reaches the end of the incantation, the bracelet lays on the table not doing much of anything. She visibly wilts. "That didn't work, did it?"
time is a LIE
"Not this time. Hilda, you're doing better than you think. Do you think I just got good at everything right away? Believe it or not, there is a lot of effort that went into these." Jayce is willing to make fun of himself and also note things like the fact he is pointing at his bicep. Which is bigger than some people's heads. Most people looking at him would think he's a body builder, but he's really just a blacksmith, as everyone knows here. He built things and that naturally comes with hard work and training.
"I have seen you fierce and determined and accomplish a great deal when you believe in yourself. You just have to treat this bracelet and magic like if you were ordering Sylvain and Claude around." Jayce points at one of them and he firmly says the spell and he can feel it in himself, as he said, and there seems to be a touch of a glimmer on the bracelet. He sets that one to the side.
"I always see it as magic being part of us now. In our blood, somehow, when it brought us here. It is naturally flowing, and that means you are meant to be able to dot his."
no subject
Hearing him share that he's had difficulties too soothes the disappointment, or at least it does marginally. Watching him effortlessly enchant one of the bracelets, she has to steel herself against feeling discouraged. The reassurance, coupled with the comparison to bossing Sylvain and Claude certainly helps too and her lips curl genuinely at that.
She wonders briefly when he says that magic is a part of their blood if Sylvain and Claude had told him about their Crests. Jayce hadn't said that explicitly of course, but it begs the question. Hilda has never been particularly cagey about her Crest, but she could see the pair of them not being so forthcoming even with someone like Jayce.
She trusts him though just like how she trusted Natasha enough to tell her. There's a bit of a self deprecating lilt to her laugh. "You say that but having a Crest didn't really help me with magic back home. And that's practically the equivalent of having magic in your blood."
no subject
Jayce does know about the Crests. There had been some discussion around them when he was asked to make Hilda's weapon. He doesn't know the exact details entirely, but he doesn't look surprised when she uses that word or confused. He knows what she means, which can probably tell her this isn't the first time he heard the word.
"Well not all magic comes naturally. I've learned a lot of spells here, but I feel like only some parts have taken. Enchantments and healing were easy, but even though I know the words, I've never really been great at fire." Jayce knows enough to give them light or warmth, but he's not sure why it feels less easy. It could be because he finds it more damaging, and he is resistant to offensive types of spells.
"I think maybe focus on your motivation. Why do you want to learn these? What are you hoping to do with them?" He assumes it'll be to help her loved ones in one way or another, whether it's making money or things for them, so keying into her reasons could help.
no subject
Hilda can't help but feel something akin to relief when Jayce admits without saying as much that he's heard about the Crests. It's a good thing too - it saves her some effort from having to explain a concept that she's certain she wouldn't do any justice explaining. Best to leave it to the boys. "Some of my friends had better luck with magic that we called Faith spells. They were more aligned with healing too which I guess makes sense since a lot of them prayed to the Goddess pretty regularly." That is to imply, more than she ever did. But then again, Hilda's downfall when it came to magic had always been a mixture of laziness and anxiety instead of lack of faith.
She mulls over his question a moment, worrying her bottom lip. "I want to make something useful. I used to make jewelry back home but it never did anything apart from look pretty - which, don't get me wrong, I still love doing. But after everything that happened," her voice trials off for a moment before finding it again, "I just want to make sure that people who wear the things I make can be safe."
crawling out of hiatus half-dead, my apologies
"I always wanted to use magic, my entire life I dreamed of it. It wasn't possible for me in my world so I made technology and magic together. It was the closest I could get." And Jayce loves Hextech. It is his greatest invention and the potential for it is endless. What he managed to accomplish in his search for magic changed his world. But it was still never going to be him being magic. Not until coming here.
Jayce nods as she answers and then puts a new bracelet in front of her. "I personally think magic comes from the heart more than the mind, so what I want you to do is think about someone you care for. Keep them in your mind and think of this spell as a shield you are creating around them."
it's okay you did ittt you got through it!!
She listens to his recounting of his previous desires and aspirations from home and gives him a little laugh. "You know, it's funny. I know that magic and technology are two different things, but after arriving here and seeing all of the technology and the things you and Viktor make together? It feels like magic to me." They only ever had the traditional sort of magic at home. She had never taken it for granted, but with technology in front of her as something tangible that everyone could use - that had been more of a surprise and wonder to her.
There's a look of doubt, or perhaps it's mild panic on Hilda's face as the new bracelet is set in front of her. After a moment though her hands hover above it the bracelet and her eyes gently close. She calls to mind how helpless she felt not being able to protect the ones that had been taken, how terrified she had been when she had seen Petra's form swallowed by the crush of snow in the mountains. A different emotion arises from the swirl of despairing ones and it's that firece desire to protect her loved ones that emerges.
It feels like a rush of warmth rushing from her hands into the bracelet - not so dissimilar to the feeling of when she's able to cast a healing spell from home. There's another beat before she cautiously opens an eye looking at Jayce first instead of the bracelet. Her breathe leaves mouth in a rush as she nervously asks, "I don't want to jinx it but did it work?"
no subject
The arcane crystals to power everything, but their designs are purely technology-based. None of their inventions here really are magic first, they're creation first, and then magic on top of it. They haven't fully moved outside of that, apparently, but whatever works. It's why he designs the jewelry first and then puts the enchantments on.
Jayce watches her and he can almost see her resolve slip into place, the moment between uncertainty to force. He thinks she's going to get it this time, it's just a feeling. He can feel the power coming off of it when he puts his hand close, but it's much better for her to witness it than agree.
"Let's find out." He picks up the bracelet and puts it to the side so he can put his body between her and it if this goes wrong. He doesn't intend on doing a dangerous spell, but you never know. And Jayce is now a mage, like he's always dreamed, so he's very cautious. They picked a defensive enchantment with metal that particularly protects against magic.
Jayce casts a fire spell and shoots it at the bracelet, so they can both see for themselves that it zaps at it and seems to be absorbed right into the metal itself. No harm is done to it, instead it only seems to glow afterward, and probably is warm to the touch. "See, you got it. I'll try a different angle."
Jayce does a wind spell instead this time and this time it doesn't absorb, it does bounce right off the bracelet and rustle all the pages and their hair in the room, but clearly whoever would be holding it would be protected from all of it.
no subject
Her hand reaches out a beat too late to try and snatch the bracelet away from his touch but it's too late, leaving her to watch helplessly as he begins his testing.
The first blast of fire magic into the bracelet is met with baited breath - and admittedly, Hilda can't help but watch from between her fingers. Her hands over her eyes have less to do with the fact that magic is being shot at an object, and more to do with not wanting to see a misshapen lump of metal because her spell failed to work.
And somehow miraculously, it doesn't. Jayce is a relentless worker and teacher unlike his student. Before Hilda can even suggest that they maybe take a break, wouldn't tea be nice right about now? Wind is rushing around them. The expression on Hilda's face is stunned, as if struggling to figure out what exactly had just transpired in front of her. Slowly, her hands lower from her face as she stares at the bracelet before back at Jayce.
Bright patches of pink slowly begin to colour her cheeks as she hesitantly asks, "You didn't just put a shield spell in there when you picked it up to make me feel better, did you?" It's a ridiculous notion and one that she's certain Jayce wouldn't do, but it's the first question that manages to make it past her lips.
no subject
"I would never!" He laughs at her question and then moves to pick it up, handing it over to her. She will feel that it is warm to the touch from the fire, but otherwise still seems to be a harmless bracelet. She did it. Jayce grins at her, as proud as if it was him doing it for the first time. As she's his student. He knows this is how it felt for Himeka when she got him here.
"This is yours." Jayce made it but now symbolically it is more than a simple piece of jewelry. "The first object you enchanted successfully. You have to keep it." He reaches out to take her hand, hers little compared to his, but he's a gentle giant and his squeeze is exactly that, gentle. "See. You can do anything you put your mind to, Hilda."
no subject
To probably many of the Summoned that used magic on a regular basis, something like this probably would have been relatively easy. An action that they could do with their eyes closed or without breaking so much of an anxious sweat. Her laziness bled into the mentality that she shouldn't bother trying because what if she failed? But on the odd occasion that she did try and succeed in spite of herself, what then?
Jayce's hand curling around hers with a comforting squeeze draws her away from her thoughts and her attention back to him. Her eyes begin to mist. It's difficult for her to determine if it's Jayce's words, the reassuring comfort from the gentle squeeze, his patience or a combination of all three that cause her to do so - but regardless, she has to squeeze her eyes shut in an attempt to get her emotions back in check.
After she swallows the initial lump in her throat she sniffles, giving his hand a squeeze back in return. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves now. This just one bracelet," she starts with a watery laugh, "I really appreciate it, Jayce. I wouldn't have gotten even this far without you. I don't know how I'm going to repay you and Viktor for being so patient with me."