Mug's little huff startled Anna; she almost dropped the handful of cards she held. She shot him a little glance out the corner of her eye, just to see if she were the one to have garnered his attention like that. He was, thankfully, looking at something under the counter, not her. I really hope he begins accepting bribery soon. I hate feeling so jumpy around him.
"All righty-roo, let's see," she sang, flipping over Elk's card of choice to reveal the image of a baseball player holding up their glove. In the middle of it was a lidless eye, tears pouring from it like a waterfall. The baseball player's eyes refused to meet the viewer. Anna nodded and reshuffled her deck.
"Good card, a lucky one," she said, as if the imagery by itself wasn't somewhat ominous. "Well, at least it is when it's the bottom edge upwards. You should feel confident in yourself today." Then suddenly, her sight blurred, as if her eyes had welled up with tears. Her breath hitched in her throat ‒ the illustration's gaze had suddenly shifted to look directly at her ‒ but then she blinked, and it was gone. The card looked the same as it always did. She cleared her throat. "Huh. That's... Never mind."
Anna looked at Elk a little sheepishly. "I don't know how much stock you put in stuff like this, but if anything, I hope you feel encouraged to do whatever you planned on accomplishing today?" She pushed the card toward him. "You can have it, if you want. I'll find another to take its place."
"All righty-roo, let's see," she sang, flipping over Elk's card of choice to reveal the image of a baseball player holding up their glove. In the middle of it was a lidless eye, tears pouring from it like a waterfall. The baseball player's eyes refused to meet the viewer. Anna nodded and reshuffled her deck.
"Good card, a lucky one," she said, as if the imagery by itself wasn't somewhat ominous. "Well, at least it is when it's the bottom edge upwards. You should feel confident in yourself today." Then suddenly, her sight blurred, as if her eyes had welled up with tears. Her breath hitched in her throat ‒ the illustration's gaze had suddenly shifted to look directly at her ‒ but then she blinked, and it was gone. The card looked the same as it always did. She cleared her throat. "Huh. That's... Never mind."
Anna looked at Elk a little sheepishly. "I don't know how much stock you put in stuff like this, but if anything, I hope you feel encouraged to do whatever you planned on accomplishing today?" She pushed the card toward him. "You can have it, if you want. I'll find another to take its place."
There was something odd. Something happened, but he wasn't certain what. She seemed thrown by something, but only for a moment. Should he question what she'd seen? Then again, he didn't want to get too involved with her or her magic. That might be catastrophic for both of them. He chose to let it go.
"No thanks, I am good," he chuckled. I don't need a card. That wasn't bad, though. I can see why it's your bread and butter." He smiled and made a vague gesture. "But you should show more confidence in your cards! Project the fact that you have full confidence in your cards and what they say. Sell the flair. People love a little bit of a show, especially when you have the skills to back it up."
"No thanks, I am good," he chuckled. I don't need a card. That wasn't bad, though. I can see why it's your bread and butter." He smiled and made a vague gesture. "But you should show more confidence in your cards! Project the fact that you have full confidence in your cards and what they say. Sell the flair. People love a little bit of a show, especially when you have the skills to back it up."
"Yeah, I don't know, there was something ‒ odd there, for a moment. But that's just magic sometimes, I think." She didn't want to admit just how strange she thought it was. She would have to investigate it later, somehow. Maybe the bookstore they had walked past the other day would have something interesting in it.
"Most people I read for are some level of desperate, so I try not to be too ‒ carnivalesque about it, if you know what I mean," she said, shuffling the strange baseball card into the mismatched deck. "It's actually fairly rare that I do casual pulls like this for people other than myself. But thank you for the encouragement." Anna smiled, once again struck by the odd, red hue of his eyes. "It's always nice to be cheered on. And thank you for listening to me ramble, also." She hadn't expected that to mean so much to her. When she realized she had to move somewhere else, finding a roomie who even tolerated magic in their shared space had been something she hadn't dared to put on her own little wish list; landing in a place with not just tolerance, but polite interest, was a gift.
"Anyway, I won't keep you from the rest of your morning." She shot a sideways glance at Mug, mulling over her decision to work in the living room. Call it exposure therapy?
"Dinner tonight?"
"Most people I read for are some level of desperate, so I try not to be too ‒ carnivalesque about it, if you know what I mean," she said, shuffling the strange baseball card into the mismatched deck. "It's actually fairly rare that I do casual pulls like this for people other than myself. But thank you for the encouragement." Anna smiled, once again struck by the odd, red hue of his eyes. "It's always nice to be cheered on. And thank you for listening to me ramble, also." She hadn't expected that to mean so much to her. When she realized she had to move somewhere else, finding a roomie who even tolerated magic in their shared space had been something she hadn't dared to put on her own little wish list; landing in a place with not just tolerance, but polite interest, was a gift.
"Anyway, I won't keep you from the rest of your morning." She shot a sideways glance at Mug, mulling over her decision to work in the living room. Call it exposure therapy?
"Dinner tonight?"
"Mmm, yes, I was planning on making pig and potatoes, if that's alright with you," Elk said. He yawned, stretched, and caught the robe as it started to open to reveal his bare chest. He did not care much if people saw his chest, but a new female roommate might not appreciate it. Especially after the incident just a bit ago where she thought he wasn't wearing anything on his bottom half. "I should go change, probably brush my hair, and then I have some errands to run out and about. That'll give you plenty of time to settle in, I should think, and some private time for your business."
He headed into his bedroom and changed into regular clothing by his standards: Black pants, a shimmery blue top, and the darkest of green jackets. Eventually, he worked the snarls out of his long hair, braided it properly, and walked out again. Now he was ready for work. He called Mug to him and took the dog with him on his first round of errands, returning for lunch, and leaving again without the dog. Mug ignored Anna, going to sleep in his human's bedroom for most of the rest of the day. Elk returned a little late, but still upheld his promise to make a simple but delicious potato and pork dish. He did get distracted at one point and almost burnt it, but remembered just in time to save dinner. He took Mug out to deal with his business, and then he was out again until very late.
The rest of the week passed much the same. Elk's schedule was not much of a schedule. Some days, he arrived home shortly before Anna got up and slept until noon. Other days, he was up and making breakfast for her before she got up. If he needed to, Mug would wake him up to take him out, but then sometimes Elk went straight back to bed. Some days he was out all day, but he did try to make it back for dinner every evening.
One evening, he got home late, and instead of trying to quickly throw together a dinner, he invited Anna out to a food truck for tacos. He promised they were the best tacos ever, and they were! Relatively cheap, too. Friday evening, he came trotting in and demanded Anna go to the movies with him, his eyes sparking with excitement. His favorite movie of all time was back in theaters for only a few nights, and he was determined to see it! It was the best movie ever! It was actually a little cheesy, but it was a fun, light-hearted movie with a bit of romance and adventure. Afterward, as a treat, he took them to a reasonably nice restaurant and enthused about the movie until he realized he was probably making a fool of himself and tried to calm down.
For the entire week, Mug sometimes watched Anna as she worked and sometimes slept in Elk's room. He still wouldn't accept her bribes, but he did seem to be coming around to her. A little bit. Maybe.
Saturday morning about mid-morning, Elk came out of his room in what was very much a lady's dressing gown, flowing and floral pink, and laid down on the carpet in the living room to stare up at the ceiling.
He headed into his bedroom and changed into regular clothing by his standards: Black pants, a shimmery blue top, and the darkest of green jackets. Eventually, he worked the snarls out of his long hair, braided it properly, and walked out again. Now he was ready for work. He called Mug to him and took the dog with him on his first round of errands, returning for lunch, and leaving again without the dog. Mug ignored Anna, going to sleep in his human's bedroom for most of the rest of the day. Elk returned a little late, but still upheld his promise to make a simple but delicious potato and pork dish. He did get distracted at one point and almost burnt it, but remembered just in time to save dinner. He took Mug out to deal with his business, and then he was out again until very late.
The rest of the week passed much the same. Elk's schedule was not much of a schedule. Some days, he arrived home shortly before Anna got up and slept until noon. Other days, he was up and making breakfast for her before she got up. If he needed to, Mug would wake him up to take him out, but then sometimes Elk went straight back to bed. Some days he was out all day, but he did try to make it back for dinner every evening.
One evening, he got home late, and instead of trying to quickly throw together a dinner, he invited Anna out to a food truck for tacos. He promised they were the best tacos ever, and they were! Relatively cheap, too. Friday evening, he came trotting in and demanded Anna go to the movies with him, his eyes sparking with excitement. His favorite movie of all time was back in theaters for only a few nights, and he was determined to see it! It was the best movie ever! It was actually a little cheesy, but it was a fun, light-hearted movie with a bit of romance and adventure. Afterward, as a treat, he took them to a reasonably nice restaurant and enthused about the movie until he realized he was probably making a fool of himself and tried to calm down.
For the entire week, Mug sometimes watched Anna as she worked and sometimes slept in Elk's room. He still wouldn't accept her bribes, but he did seem to be coming around to her. A little bit. Maybe.
Saturday morning about mid-morning, Elk came out of his room in what was very much a lady's dressing gown, flowing and floral pink, and laid down on the carpet in the living room to stare up at the ceiling.
The first week of Anna's new living situation passed more pleasantly than she could have hoped for. She got used to Elk's lack of schedule; he came and went at all hours of the day, always in vividly colorful outfits that stood in stark contrast to her own muted aesthetics. He seemed to have a floral dressing gown for every occasion. It wasn't the oddest thing she had heard of someone collecting, but easily one of the most charming.
He took her out for tacos; she baked them lemon cookies. He shared his favorite movie with her; she raved about her current favorite books. He made them tea and listened to her talk into the small hours after an unpleasant reading where a client hadn't received the answers they hoped for. All in all, she had begun to think of him more as a friend than a roomie.
So that Saturday, when Elk emerged from his bedroom in yet another dressing gown, it didn't take her long to get up from the couch and lie down beside him to stare at the ceiling, too.
"Hey, buddy," she said gently, her hands folded on her stomach. "If you want a morning nap, you can just ask me to move, y'know." She turned her head slightly to look at his cheek.
"Or you can skip straight to telling me what's wrong. I told you, my enjoyment of 'The Street with No Name' was absolutely genuine. It's a solid six-out-of-ten movie."
He took her out for tacos; she baked them lemon cookies. He shared his favorite movie with her; she raved about her current favorite books. He made them tea and listened to her talk into the small hours after an unpleasant reading where a client hadn't received the answers they hoped for. All in all, she had begun to think of him more as a friend than a roomie.
So that Saturday, when Elk emerged from his bedroom in yet another dressing gown, it didn't take her long to get up from the couch and lie down beside him to stare at the ceiling, too.
"Hey, buddy," she said gently, her hands folded on her stomach. "If you want a morning nap, you can just ask me to move, y'know." She turned her head slightly to look at his cheek.
"Or you can skip straight to telling me what's wrong. I told you, my enjoyment of 'The Street with No Name' was absolutely genuine. It's a solid six-out-of-ten movie."
Elk took a huge breath and let it out in a depths-of-despair sigh. "My life... it is officially over," he moaned. He closed his eyes and lay his forearm over his face. "Gone. Toast. Poof! Bye-bye! Never again can I see the sunshine or smell the flowers or hear the birds. I shall be living underground. Perhaps, if I am lucky, I will be able to make friends with the moles."
Mug yawned and wandered over. He flopped down on Elk's other side. He did not know or care what was going on, but, hey, the floor was always a good place to nap.
Mug yawned and wandered over. He flopped down on Elk's other side. He did not know or care what was going on, but, hey, the floor was always a good place to nap.
"Alright, I'm sure it's not as bad as all that," Anna said, a bit startled. He had a flair for dramatics, she had discovered that fairly quickly, but this seemed a tad excessive. "Toast is for eating, and moles are cute, but I'm pretty sure none of them live here in the city."
She reached out and patted his arm gently, but it was difficult for her to ignore the rising concern she felt. Could he have been fired from whatever his mysterious job was? How involved, exactly, would she have to get? "Come on, tell me. What happened?"
She reached out and patted his arm gently, but it was difficult for her to ignore the rising concern she felt. Could he have been fired from whatever his mysterious job was? How involved, exactly, would she have to get? "Come on, tell me. What happened?"
Elk held up both hands and stared between them at the ceiling. "Picture, if you will, a perfectly ordinary exchange. A shopkeeper exchanging money for goods. An older lady, and a younger man tending the till. Another young man making the purchase. Perfectly innocent and ordinary, right? Absolutely. No!" He shook his hands slightly. "The innocent and ordinary is completely destroyed by a slip of the tongue! The customer, as he goes to pay, tells the man not to work too hard, but he fumbles. Fumbles! In the most ridiculous of ways!" He groaned and flopped both arms over his face. "I am too ashamed to say it! But I must! I told him," he choked, "I told him not to be too hard!" He wailed softly. "I am too ashamed to live! To ever show my face again!"
Anna burst out laughing.
"Okay, yeah, I'll call the moles to see if they have a spare room for you. Hoo, that's mortifying. You can never show your face there again, for all time. Or at the very least a month or two. But, I guarantee you," she said, still snickering as she propped herself up on an elbow to look down at Elk, "as someone who used to work retail ‒ you made his day. There's little enough to laugh at when you stand behind a counter all day, dealing with people who want to return things without a receipt and who are really, really upset about that when you tell them you can't help them. But that guy, he will remember that exchange for a long time. Embarrassing for you, for sure. But he's got a funny story from a boring job, now."
She sat up, cross-legged, ashen braid sweeping over her shoulder. If this was his reaction to an awkward social mishap, she couldn't begin to imagine the fallout of an actual disaster. She gave Elk a gentle nudge in the ribs.
"Man, you scared me. I thought something was actually, horribly wrong. Like that weird creature that's around the area, frightening strays. Thought Mug had gotten hurt or something." The dog looked completely fine; ignoring her just as he had done since the beginning, though perhaps with slightly less contempt.
"Okay, yeah, I'll call the moles to see if they have a spare room for you. Hoo, that's mortifying. You can never show your face there again, for all time. Or at the very least a month or two. But, I guarantee you," she said, still snickering as she propped herself up on an elbow to look down at Elk, "as someone who used to work retail ‒ you made his day. There's little enough to laugh at when you stand behind a counter all day, dealing with people who want to return things without a receipt and who are really, really upset about that when you tell them you can't help them. But that guy, he will remember that exchange for a long time. Embarrassing for you, for sure. But he's got a funny story from a boring job, now."
She sat up, cross-legged, ashen braid sweeping over her shoulder. If this was his reaction to an awkward social mishap, she couldn't begin to imagine the fallout of an actual disaster. She gave Elk a gentle nudge in the ribs.
"Man, you scared me. I thought something was actually, horribly wrong. Like that weird creature that's around the area, frightening strays. Thought Mug had gotten hurt or something." The dog looked completely fine; ignoring her just as he had done since the beginning, though perhaps with slightly less contempt.
Elk moved an arm enough to glare at her as she laughed at him. "I'm so glad to know my misery brings you so much glee," he grumbled.
Then he sighed and flopped one arm down beside him and let the other coil behind Anna in a friendly manner. "I suppose that is what comedy is: enjoying another's misery and being very glad it is not you. If this did, indeed, lighten another's load, I can bear it. I suppose." He studied the ceiling for a bit longer and then frowned, tilting his head. "We really should dust the corners more. I think there's a cobweb up there." He glanced at her. "What did you say about a weird creature?"
Mug lifted his head with a grumble.
"No, Mug, I was not insulting you."
Mug huffed in a "you better not be" manner and dropped his head again.
Then he sighed and flopped one arm down beside him and let the other coil behind Anna in a friendly manner. "I suppose that is what comedy is: enjoying another's misery and being very glad it is not you. If this did, indeed, lighten another's load, I can bear it. I suppose." He studied the ceiling for a bit longer and then frowned, tilting his head. "We really should dust the corners more. I think there's a cobweb up there." He glanced at her. "What did you say about a weird creature?"
Mug lifted his head with a grumble.
"No, Mug, I was not insulting you."
Mug huffed in a "you better not be" manner and dropped his head again.
Anna shrugged.
"Something's apparently moved into the neighborhood and isn't getting along with the other animals here. Simon says they first noticed it about a week ago." She grabbed her phone from the coffee table and showed Elk the pictures Simon had sent her. "They're considering sending them to a cryptozoology expert, but I don't know if he's already done that. He says they're often super busy because it's not a very popular field."
She watched Elk's face with curiosity. "What do you think it is?"
"Something's apparently moved into the neighborhood and isn't getting along with the other animals here. Simon says they first noticed it about a week ago." She grabbed her phone from the coffee table and showed Elk the pictures Simon had sent her. "They're considering sending them to a cryptozoology expert, but I don't know if he's already done that. He says they're often super busy because it's not a very popular field."
She watched Elk's face with curiosity. "What do you think it is?"
You are on: Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » A Wizard and a Witch Dodging the Law (private 1x1)