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This was a bad idea this was a bad idea this was a bad idea.
Holly runs as fast as she can but the demon's faster. She has no idea where Lightning's gotten to; maybe he found a tree to climb. She on the other hand has been diverted into a treeless hill and she's careening down a slope, trying very hard not to trip.
And the demon's gaining on her.
She's never seen anything like it and neither has Crystal; maybe Book knows what it is but Book's asleep. It's mostly mouth - it looks like a cross between a floorlength mirror of a mouth and a snake to propel the mouth along.
And Holly's not fast enough.
The mouth catches her.
But it doesn't hurt.
Where are we?
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inourhead
inourhead
She looks through her bag, too. She produces what looks like a single deshelled peanut.
She picks up his apple core.
There is a series of abrupt transitions, and then she is holding what for all the world looks and smells like an apple-core-shaped peanut and a peanut-shaped bit of browned apple.
She puts the bit of browned apple in with the mice, and breaks off the "stem" of her peanut and gives that to the mice too, and bites off a nubbin of peanut and puts it in her bag, and then eats the rest of it, nibble nibble.
She picks up his apple core.
There is a series of abrupt transitions, and then she is holding what for all the world looks and smells like an apple-core-shaped peanut and a peanut-shaped bit of browned apple.
She puts the bit of browned apple in with the mice, and breaks off the "stem" of her peanut and gives that to the mice too, and bites off a nubbin of peanut and puts it in her bag, and then eats the rest of it, nibble nibble.
unblinkered
Mice. Teleporting. Language. Snakes. These are all things he has abruptly stopped thinking about. He has instead started thinking about the impossible thing she just did.
"WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!"
He lunges for- no, she's eaten it, he- the mice are eating- he- frantically points at the mice eating the thing, and her mouth, and the...
What?
"WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!"
He lunges for- no, she's eaten it, he- the mice are eating- he- frantically points at the mice eating the thing, and her mouth, and the...
What?
inourhead
When he makes a sudden movement she scrambles away from him. Her noise of alarm sounds like "leep".
unblinkered
He stops moving- shit, he spooked her again- and instead just points at her accusingly.
"What was that?! What did you do?"
He doesn't bother trying to communicate anything complicated- she shouldn't have any trouble noticing what alarmed him, he assumes.
"What was that?! What did you do?"
He doesn't bother trying to communicate anything complicated- she shouldn't have any trouble noticing what alarmed him, he assumes.
inourhead
She looks really confused, then slowly holds up her apple-core-turned-weird-peanut. And bites into it again.
unblinkered
Max nods, to confirm that's what he's concerned about- and "What?! What did you-"
He would ordinarily have no words, and then quickly produce words, and then say those words- but in this case, practical considerations have him locked into the first state.
He would ordinarily have no words, and then quickly produce words, and then say those words- but in this case, practical considerations have him locked into the first state.
unblinkered
No, what? Is that like... a shrug? Is she holding something he can't see? What does that gesture mean?
He... he looks around the room, he spies- there's a wax apple on Gloria's desk, he could use that to... say... what kind of question could he illustrate with...
He grabs the wax apple, and- and the half of a chip, and he holds them, and stares at them really hard, and shakes them... and nothing happens, maybe she'll notice what didn't happen...
He... he looks around the room, he spies- there's a wax apple on Gloria's desk, he could use that to... say... what kind of question could he illustrate with...
He grabs the wax apple, and- and the half of a chip, and he holds them, and stares at them really hard, and shakes them... and nothing happens, maybe she'll notice what didn't happen...
inourhead
She plucks the wax apple out of his hand - gives it a funny look - and rummages in her bag and comes up with a bit of dried papaya. She holds them up so he can clearly see them.
Step by step, the wax apple changes in color, and sheen, and her hand dips a little as it gets heavier, and the smell of papaya wafts from it.
The piece of papaya she started with turns wax-apple-colored and glossy.
She digs her thumbnail into the ex-wax-fruit, takes a chunk out of it, and tucks it into her bag. She hands him the rest of it.
Step by step, the wax apple changes in color, and sheen, and her hand dips a little as it gets heavier, and the smell of papaya wafts from it.
The piece of papaya she started with turns wax-apple-colored and glossy.
She digs her thumbnail into the ex-wax-fruit, takes a chunk out of it, and tucks it into her bag. She hands him the rest of it.
unblinkered
His eyes widen as she performs the... the magic, is all he can call it, and stares intently at the papayapple as she hands it to him. This is a real thing that she just did.
Gloria is going to want to know what happened to her wax apple, and he's not going to have an answer she'll believe. Unless... he supposes Pyay could re-wax the apple, though he'd have to explain the-
wait no she could not do that, that is impossible, that is not a thing that happens
He's standing stock-still and staring at the fruit, holding his breath.
Gloria is going to want to know what happened to her wax apple, and he's not going to have an answer she'll believe. Unless... he supposes Pyay could re-wax the apple, though he'd have to explain the-
wait no she could not do that, that is impossible, that is not a thing that happens
He's standing stock-still and staring at the fruit, holding his breath.
unblinkered
What did she just do? She... the first time, she turned an apple core into... a large, apple-core-shaped peanut, but... the peanut turned small and apple-core-y. She... swapped their properties? But... peanut-ness is complicated, it's not an amount that can be transferred between objects. The same goes for... waxness, and appleness...
It could have been... he'll call it "nanotech", even though he suspects it's more likely something unrecognizable enough to call "magic". But calling things "magic"... he doesn't like how that sounds. It appears to work with false ontological primitives, but...
But it could just be that her "nanotech" knows a pattern for peanuts and papayas, and can reshape things into those known configurations. Just... reshaping organic material on the molecular level.
...he hands her back the papayapple. They're going to have to do tests.
It could have been... he'll call it "nanotech", even though he suspects it's more likely something unrecognizable enough to call "magic". But calling things "magic"... he doesn't like how that sounds. It appears to work with false ontological primitives, but...
But it could just be that her "nanotech" knows a pattern for peanuts and papayas, and can reshape things into those known configurations. Just... reshaping organic material on the molecular level.
...he hands her back the papayapple. They're going to have to do tests.
inourhead
She seems mildly surprised to receive the papayapple, but after she has eaten up her peanut she takes a bite out of that too.
unblinkered
And that's... edible? The... would there have been enough... raw material in the wax to...
He grabs- what does he grab- he takes a piece of paper and draws an apple, then tears it out around the outline, and gives it to her. He's not sure what she'll do with it, but presumably it'll produce... edible paper? Maybe? He needs more expendable objects for this.
He grabs- what does he grab- he takes a piece of paper and draws an apple, then tears it out around the outline, and gives it to her. He's not sure what she'll do with it, but presumably it'll produce... edible paper? Maybe? He needs more expendable objects for this.
unblinkered
He makes a strangled sort of sound- and rummages in Gloria's desk for objects for her to turn into food. He finds a- a package of confiscated chewing gum, a box of chalk, a box of sidewalk chalk for whatever reason, some expo markers, paper clips, staples, some- beef jerky? Isn't she vegetarian?- and... that's it.
He dumps the lot of it on a desk and looks at her expectantly.
He dumps the lot of it on a desk and looks at her expectantly.
inourhead
She seems to find the stuff mildly interesting; she holds the papayapple between her teeth so her hands are free and sifts through it. Chalk: not that interesting. Chewing gum: bizarre. Paper clips: momentarily intriguing. Staples: bewildering. Beef jerky: she offers this back to Max without doing anything to it.
unblinkered
Okay, that's not what- does she even...?
He takes a piece of sidewalk chalk and a stick of gum, and repeats the staring/shaking gesture with one in each hand.
He takes a piece of sidewalk chalk and a stick of gum, and repeats the staring/shaking gesture with one in each hand.
inourhead
She laughs at him. She picks up two pieces of sidewalk chalk, swaps their colors, puts them back down, makes a gesture at them that might be accompanied by a "ta-da!" if she spoke English and didn't have her mouth full, and takes another bite out of her papayapple.
unblinkered
okay it is not just a food thing
But she can't... gum-ify chalk? Or chalk-ify gum? Or... no, she just took that to mean, do that in general, with the... and she...
He takes a piece of chalk and walks up to the blackboard, and draws the plane for... Kweengow, and a circle with scribbly continents for Earth. Above Kweengow, he draws an apple core and a peanut, with arrows pointing to each other, and then draws the same thing above Earth. The one above Earth, he scribbles out.
But she can't... gum-ify chalk? Or chalk-ify gum? Or... no, she just took that to mean, do that in general, with the... and she...
He takes a piece of chalk and walks up to the blackboard, and draws the plane for... Kweengow, and a circle with scribbly continents for Earth. Above Kweengow, he draws an apple core and a peanut, with arrows pointing to each other, and then draws the same thing above Earth. The one above Earth, he scribbles out.
unblinkered
Well, okay, yes, clearly she can do the thing. He elaborates, by drawing several stick figures with accompanying crossed-out apple/peanut, and a final stick figure- clearly meant to resemble her- with the swappy magic doodle not crossed out.
Or maybe that's not why she was confused? He's... he's going to have to let Gloria handle her, she knows... how to get past this stuff.
Or maybe that's not why she was confused? He's... he's going to have to let Gloria handle her, she knows... how to get past this stuff.
inourhead
She squints at him. She picks up two more pieces of sidewalk chalk. She swaps their colors a few times - and then offers the chalk to him.
unblinkered
What is she trying to say? She... does she think he's lying about not being able to do it? Does she even recognize that he... did the drawing not get it across?
Was she... trying to demonstrate how to...?
He... takes the chalk, and... he doesn't do the exaggerated gesture this time, but he concentrates on the chalk, willing them to swap colors. He feels really stupid.
Was she... trying to demonstrate how to...?
He... takes the chalk, and... he doesn't do the exaggerated gesture this time, but he concentrates on the chalk, willing them to swap colors. He feels really stupid.
inourhead
The chalk stays the same.
"Nuo," she murmurs, in loosely the same tone of voice that might accompany "holy shit".
"Nuo," she murmurs, in loosely the same tone of voice that might accompany "holy shit".