User blog:Bluebutterflychan/Headcanon Corner: Science and Sorcery

In the EAH episode Briar's Study Party, there's this catchy little scene where they're trying to memorize something that looks like (and probably is EAH's equivalent of) the Periodic Table of Elements. And you know what? It's kind of a little bit one of my favorite scenes.

Not because I love the idea of a study party (which I totally do) or because I think Briar Beauty's intelligence doesn't get enough showtime (which it doesn't), but because I'm a nerd who loves the real-science equivalency of it all. Allow me to explain...

In-Canon
Pixie Dust and Dragon Fire seem to correspond locationally to Cadmium and Hafnium on the (real) Periodic Table of Elements, where (of course) location means everything because the elements are quite particularly arranged. Cadmium is a common (though highly toxic) component found in batteries, which seems like it would kind of make sense if Pixie Dust is used to "power" a spell. Bonus: it's sometimes used in lasers and infared motion detectors, which is kind of magical in its own right.

Hafnium, which finds the majority of its use in nuclear reactors, is ALSO prone to spontaneous combustion midair. The Wikipedia page even cites that its effect is very similar to a particular explosive projectile known as-- you guessed it-- Dragon's Breath. (The page linked contains a picture of a gun being fired, so if that's something that bothers you, this is fair warning.)

Obviously, two things seem pretty clear: This is further compounded by the scene where Apple White takes the Chemythstry class pop quiz in Way Too Wonderland (sorry, no link for this one), in which she is capable of passing purely on basis of knowing "the formulas and the mohexular valences, cross-referenced with the periodic table."
 * 1) The webisode writing team seriously did their homework, and
 * 2) Magical elements have their basis in mundane (non-magical) representation.

Chemical reaction formulas and a periodic table very clearly exist within the universe of EAH, and from this one line we can also glean that elemental molecules in their universe have molecular ("mohexular") valence electrons, exactly as ours do. We can guess at some further information from the background noise of the Chemythstry teacher's orders.

Here are the lines spoken by Professor Rumplestitlskin: The first of these matters is that apparently, some element with the label of "U" is capable of having isotopes as light as 5 and 4 in atomic mass... somewhere in-between Lithium and Helium on the real periodic table. This means that prior labels like " SO 4 " likely have nothing to do with real-world sulfates, because in reality, the element that bears the label "U" is "Uranium," which has an atomic mass of 256 and would never, ever be found in an isotope-5 version... OR in a high school chemistry class, for that matter!
 * Five parts 3O2 SO4
 * Eight parts Pixie Dust to begin reaction
 * Heat! Cool!
 * Add seven parts Wolfsbane
 * Separate, re-mix, reverse procedure!
 * Add isotope of 5 U(7)... no, 4 U(7)
 * (ominous evil cackling)

Pixie Dust has also proven to be highly volatile due to its spontaneous combustion at this point in the animation, and Professor Rumplestiltskin is probably trying to make his students fail on purpose by giving them the direction to heat and cool it... ESPECIALLY since adding Pixie Dust is apparently enough to ignite a reaction by itself.

However, we at least know two new things: there is an element or compound named Wolfsbane, and it is probably as magical as Pixie Dust. Secondly, Professor Rumplestiltskin feels the need to make a distinction between  3O 2   and  SO 4 , but he conveys them in the same step and does not even distinguish that they might be separate compounds by saying them all together, like  3O 2 SO 4. He might just be trolling his class again, but I don't think so.

From this second point, I feel comparatively confident in saying that there are actually two periodic tables-- one for magical fairytale elements, like Pixie Dust, Wolfsbane, and Dragon Fire, plus a separate one for mundane, non-magical elements like your standard hydrogen and helium (helium in particular has been proven to exist in EAH-verse).

Subequently, there might be some overlap in letter assignation-- Pixie Dust, for example, mught share the label "Pd" with the mundane element Palladium-- but there's probably some sort of procedure for listing the elemental makeup of compounds that contain magical and mundane versions of the same label. For example, maybe they always list the magical version first, and when the first label is repeated, everything afterwards?? I'm not totally sure how this would work, tbh, but there's got to be a method.

Deep Into Headcanon Country
I have some pretty specific headcanons built off of that last point, and I think they stand a pretty decent chance at fitting into canon, however vaguely.

Magical elements seem to be named with two-word (or very nearly two-word) common names, making substances/forces such as Belladonna, Witch Brew, Sunlight, and Moonstone mageworthy names. However, I'm a fan of the idea that many elements which do not fit into this scheme possess a name that ends in "-ium," such as my own ""fan element"" celestinium. Mundane elements, of course, need no explanation.

Then, I would imagine, there are a handful of typically-mundane elements that are so widely used as "fairytale elements" that they have their own separate addendum on the side of either periodic table. I am, of course, thinking about such elements as silver, iron, platinum, and lead... and let us not forget the ultimate borderline element, gold.

Based upon these headcanons about magical elements and mundane elements, I have a headcanon theory as to what consists a "witch" (such as Ginger Breadhouse's mother, the Candy Witch) as opposed to a "sorceress" (such as the Evil Queen) or a "fairy" (like Faybelle or Farrah).

Until proven false by canon publication, I am determined to believe that sorceresses like Raven and her mother cast magic based purely on magical substances such as Dragon Fire and Pixie Dust. This isn't to say that they never need spell foci, or that they can't affect largely mundane objects, but rather to say that they can pull magical elements and compounds out of the air itself without needing for it to be in any way attached to mundane substances for usage.

Similiarly, fairies like Farrah Goodfairy cast using exclusively magical elements as well... except, via Farrah's Signature doll diary, they're actually made of magic elements themselves. I imagine the comparison between a Sorceress and a Fairy is very similar to the difference between an Olympic swimmer and a six-foot-long jellyfish: one of them knows their trade very well, and the other one literally cannot survive without it because their "trade" is 98% of what their body is actually made out of.

Contrary to this style of spellcasting, witches like Ginger Breadhouse and my own pet OC would require something mundane-based to tie their spells down before they can use them. If she were to ever cast any spells of her own, Ginger would be required to bind her spell to a (probably carbon-based) food object, toss it in the oven or stove to get the heat to trigger the necessary chemical reactions for the spell to actually work, and then feed the spell to her spell-target.

I'm capable of actually spelling out the specifics of my OC's spellcasting, so let me explain more thoroughly. Character is exceptionally attuned to the magical element of celestinium, which floats around everywhere (as all magic does). He binds a spell to a piece of mundane sulfur, because it is inexpensive and works well with the magical element he is presently using. Because celestinium and sulfur are highly reactive, the spell takes immediate effect, and with a plume of orange smoke, the spell is completed, leaving behind only a faint residue of Celestinium sulfide (CtS2).

In Conclusion
I have headcanons about the use of blood in magic, as well, but that's a whole other story, and frankly, I've rambled on long enough for today. If you're still reading, thank you so much... this headcanon op-ed really spiralled out of control.

Please please PLEASE tell me your science-and-sorcery related headcanons in the comments section below! I love headcanons about fictional realm magic, and fictional realm science, and ESPECIALLY both of them put together! Do you have any OCs who use magic? If yes, how do you think their own magic works? I would love to hear! :)