Midnight Musings

So right now it's 11:55. I am tired, but while I was out walking in this strangling heat, I was thinking.
Once again, Bartimaeus Trilogy crossed my mind. Mainly because I was mulling it over. I just finished the second book.
But it got me thinking about how Jonathan Stroud had to get into the mind of Nathaniel, who is really becoming the biggest jerk character I've ever read. As well as the other magicians in the novel. I've read a hell of a lot of books, all with some very loathesome characters, but this whole slave thing claws at my heart. Reading the commands and the slavery of the demons is actually somewhat painful to read. I like Bartimaeus a lot. I don't much like him in servitude. I'm very much looking forward to the third book, where you get to see Ptolemy and Bartimaeus in action. Apparently Ptolenmy treats him like a friend and equal. Which is all very refreshing to know.

But anyhow. I was walking outside and was looking at the pavement. AND WHAT DO I SEE?

My shadow. I know it's been done and done again, Peter Pan, Danny Phantom, Charmed... erm. But I was thinking about having shadows as minions. What if your shadow actually had a personality? Or if it just became like an extension of yourself? It'd become quite handy at dusk or dawn when your shadow's extra long. You could reach faaaaar out. What if you could manipulate more shadows than just your own? What if shadows are living things, just in a different world, their images distorted by the sun and time of day but freed at night when it's lightless?

I had this image of some little girl, alone in a corner, children playing elsewhere around her. She was having a teaparty, it was all very dark and shadowy where she was, and she was talking to no person. But there are whispers and replies and giggles. It was a very strong image. She would grow up and become like some supernatural person who would someday have to be kept in a padded white cell with fluorescent lights on everywhere in the windowless room at all times, so that there are barely any shadows. Homn.

I was also thinking about magic and "super powers" and how I think we may take our own talents for granted. I think that we are a superpowered people. Maybe not in our own eyes, but through the eyes of another. Perspective always amazes me. We have books of a human through the eyes of a dog or lion, but what about a dog or lion through the eyes of a human? What would they see? How would they react? We can create things with language and thought. We've invented medicines and remedies to halt disease, infection-- machines that even death yields to. We have weapons capable of destroying the world. Inventions that make us faster than any living thing. How would that look through the eyes of a wild animal? Would we be fearsome or wonderful? Or both? He have some pretty damn good food. That is something wonderful.
But yeah. Sure, we can't go back in time. But all the old stories of magic-- we can fly without wings. We can go deep into the sea. With wands we can emit flames (have you ever had a candle lighter?). Guns emit a flash of light, and then leave the victim for dead. I don't know. I am just looking at all of these things, all of these stories, how fantastic they are. People yearning for these abilities when they already have them. The only difference is the tools used. And of course the expenditure of money.

I am a crazy lunatic. It's 12:15 now and time for some sleep.