i'm losing my mind

[wittyskepticism]

WHO: Astrid Hawke
WHERE: By the forest in 6I, then all over
WHEN: October 7th
OPEN TO: ALL
WARNINGS: TBD

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In all honesty, for the longest time Hawke has been expecting something to blow up. Ever since the earthquakes and especially since the eclipse and the rash of illnesses, she has been expected something to happen. A darkspawn invasion, the world to implode, a Rift into the Fade. Something. But for the most part, things have been relatively normal. For whatever passes as normal in this strange little village.

So when she spies what looks like a pear tree in full bloom, complete with actual pears, she is both suspicious and intrigued. Pears are good. Pears mean food. She's more interested in food than a lot of things here and though she isn't much of a farmer or a gardener, she isn't about to let this one go without at least trying it. So, even though she also doesn't have a basket or anything to carry a lot of them back, she decides she'll at least pick one to try. If they're ripe, she'll come back for more later.

Reaching up, she chooses the one that looks the best, twisting her hand once she's grasped it and tugging until the pear comes free. What she doesn't expect is for the thing to vanish. One of her eyebrows arches and she turns her hand over. No sign of the pear at all can be seen on her hand.

Case of the vanishing peach, is what she wants to say. Except nothing comes out. She mouths the words, but no sound can be heard. It's like the air won't even push through her throat right. She tries again. Same result. Now her expression morphs into something like irritation. She can't even make terrible puns to cope without her voice!

This better not be permanent.

Deciding to avoid any other peaches that might be skulking around, she heads out of the forest and back towards the village. Her first stop is the Inn, where she looks for something to eat just in case it's some sort of illness that just needs a good bowl of soup. When that doesn't seem to do the trick, she leaves for the hospital. Eventually, she wanders around the village, looking grumpy and put out, and ends up back at the house she's sharing with Fenris. It's easier just to be there than anything else.

With her luck, this will be permanent and she's certainly going to sulk and complain for as long as it lasts.

Comments

[elderflowermacarons]

Taciturn is a possibility, certainly, and he rolls with that assumption for now. It's not like he's so great at correctly observing social norms himself. He's honestly more interested by the silence than he would have been by a similarly rote greeting. Because hail and well met and shit is rote for him. "Strong silent type?" He is hilarious.

[wittyskepticism]

That gets an even deeper glare from Hawke. If Aveline were here, she'd have her friend threaten some good sense into him. Aveline is always good for that. Or Fenris could knock him around a bit. She's sure he'd like that. As it is, all she can do is point at her throat, make talking noises with her hand, and then turn it palm-up in a shrug.

She just can't talk today.

[elderflowermacarons]

"If somebody got a silence incantation off, you should know that's an area effect. You could just leave." He hopes that's what happened. He's sniffed out plenty of instances of magic as he recognizes it, but he's still on the lookout for more. Any little hint is one potential step closer to cracking whatever has his own spellcasting locked down.

[wittyskepticism]

Hawke has been around enough mages to know what spells are normally like. This "advice" sours her mood even further. Turning, she points off in the direction of the tree she'd found earlier before attempting to mime picking a fruit off. She's well away from where she'd been when she picked the fruit, but the rules in this place don't follow normal rules.

[elderflowermacarons]

Fortunately, he has a little context from poking his overlong nose in everyone's business whenever the opportunity arises. "Ooh, one of those. Cursed fruit really is a classic for a reason." He should find an enchantment specialist sometime and see if there's any special reason besides tradition.

[wittyskepticism]

Hawke raises an eyebrow at that. Classic cursed fruit? What? She lifts one hand palm-up and shrugs like she has utterly no idea what he's talking about. If he'd like to explain, that might help.

[elderflowermacarons]

"You're not the first one around here. And I guess food is real handy if you're into the enchantment thing. I can see why, so that's probably the angle our friends up in the metaphorical bleachers are working." Puzzling out the fine points of the magic here keeps him sorta sane, and addressing their captors as irritating background noise just makes him happier.