Fantasy Leaf of the World (1x1 Out Of Words/Desert Rose)

[Out Of Words]

Augie "Duckie" Wells

Spoiler

Augie "Duckie" Wells

​

Appearance: Augie is vertically challenged any way you look at it, standing at barely 5'2", with a weight on the lean side of the fence. He prefers to consider himself 'wiry' instead of thin. His hair is a mousey brown, with a ragged cut, the result of hacking on it himself when it gets annoyingly long. His eyes are a light blue with a hint of a golden circle on the outside edges. Augie enjoys clothing just loose enough to have a wide freedom of movement. Also, it hides just how thin he really is. His favorite is a hooded shirt/tunic with secret pockets sewn on the inside.

Abilities: Augie is a shifter of the werefox variety. He is agile, when he isn't tripping over his own feet. And quick, when he isn't running into something because he chose to look over a shoulder at the most inconvenient time. Augie has great eyesight, and can see partially in the dark. His hearing is above average, able to hear a mouse just under the ground's surface. Helps when he needs a quick snack.

Nearby, dry leaves of autumn crunched underneath a heavy boot. Augie held as still as one of the statues he'd often talk to in the cemetery where he was currently taking up residence. Both of his hands were pressed tightly over his mouth. For extra precaution, he also bit down on his tongue, literally. The faint, coppery taste of blood was proof, a taste he didn't particularly like. It worked though, the footsteps moved away from his hiding place among the shrubbery. When they spoke, it sounded like they were about to be on the far side of the cemetery.

"Brat's around here somewhere. Don't forget to check any open crypts. The prince will have our heads if we can't get the jewel back and I assure you, your heads will roll before mine!"

'They' were the crown's royal guards, and the jewel they were searching for was a dashingly good looking emerald carefully cut into the shape of a leaf. The 'Leaf of the World' was the full name of the beauty tucked safely away in a secret pocket of his tunic. With any luck, that's exactly where it would stay. Augie waited another full minute as he listened intently for any of the other guards. When all the sounds came from the other side of the cemetery, he chanced a peek. The coast was clear, the time was upon him, time to get the ever loving heck out of North Hills Cemetery.

Augie maintained the crouch as he slowly crept out of the shrubbery and toward the surrounding woods. One hand slipped away from his mouth to tug up the cloth tied around his neck. Augie hadn't had the time to don the magically enchanted mouth gag before the guards made their appearance, and had to improvise. He knew it would be difficult at best, making a getaway with hands held over his mouth. Truth be told, the taste of blood from biting his tongue had started to turn his stomach. He just had to slide the cloth into place before he made a sound.

See, Augie had a bit of a problem.

There was no filter between his head, and his mouth. If Augie thought it, his mouth said it, no matter what it was. If Augie thought one's choice of clothing lacked flair, he'd state as much. If he found one's smell too pungent, he let them know without batting an eye. If Augie knew a secret, the cat would be out of the bag faster than it was put into the bag. As one could imagine, this made life extremely difficult if one wasn't a hermit. And Augie was not. If asked the reason why, Augie couldn't say. He'd talk about a number of other things that popped into his head at the time, but the reason or rhyme for why, he didn't know. It was what it was, one hell of an inconvenience. It made his chosen profession of pilfering ten times more troublesome than it had to be. Though there were solutions, if one had coin to spare.

One such solution cost Augie a good year's worth of coin, baubles, and one I.O.U. favor the magic weaver could 'cash' in at any time. It was so worth the price, in his eyes. The piece of cloth was enchanted with a spell of silence. As long as it was either over his mouth, like a mask, or in his mouth, like a gag, nothing he said would be heard, not even by himself. The latter was somewhat irritating at times, not hearing his own words. However, prizes like the Leaf of the World made everything alright, assuming he could escape and keep the beauty.

Augie had just slipped the cloth up and over his mouth, when he felt a small tap-tap-tap to a shoulder, followed by a not so discreet clearing of the throat. Crouched still, he tilted his head upward and found one of the guards standing over him from behind. The man had a twist of a grin on his face, as if he had been following while the thief duck waddled across the small dirt road toward the treeline. Spoiler alert, he had. Looked like the bastard had found it highly entertaining to boot. The guard held out a meaty hand, fingers made the 'gimme' motion as he spoke quiet, not wanting to alert the other guards.

"Give me the jewel, and you can go."

The amusement of watching the waddle toward the trees had been enough that the guard was reluctant to see the young thief swing from a rope at the end of the day. However, they did need the jewel back. Augie let out a groan, and the cloth over his mouth moved as he talked, but no sound would be heard. One hand delved into the inside of his tunic, and Augie rummaged around for a moment. Several silent movements of his mouth passed before the thief placed the cold gem in the guard's palm.

"See? Not that hard. You should try.... wait. HEY!"

The guard had taken a look at the gem in the palm of his hand, only to realize it was not the Leaf of the World, but a round piece of stained glass. With a frown, and words on his lips, he had looked back to the thief, only to catch the tail end as Augie darted into the trees. The guard quickly pocketed the piece of glass as others came to see what was going on. With a small twinge of regret, he gestured toward the spot he last spied the thief, though not as fast as he likely should have.

"He went into the trees!"

The guards called to the rest, some drew their swords, and followed in the direction they were shown. Augie was already high tailing it out of there. He moved the mask into his mouth, making it more of a gag to keep it in place. Then he leaned forward until his fingers brushed the ground, and Augie used another trick up his sleeve. Clothing and skin gave way to fur as bones rearranged into a different shape. A distinctly non-human form, it was smaller, faster, and would give him a greater chance of a successful escape. The fox knew these woods like the back of his ... paw.

See, Augie wasn't completely human.

 

[Desert Rose]

Spoiler: Character Sheet

Name: Paige Elizabeth Turner
View attachment 706098

Abilities: If someone makes direct eye contact and shares something personal about them, she can influence a thought or feeling regarding that subject. To those completely susceptible she can create a complete delusion. The ability does get harder to those that are perceptive and can block outside influences in their head.

"STOP!"

"Get her!"

The air practically burned from every deep breath Paige drunk in. She needed to rest, but as it would seem that would have to wait. Fifteen restless nights she waited for the opportune moment of escape. She didn't think it would be so soon, in fairness the girl didn't think at all as she just literally seized the moment. When she mouthed off at one of them, earning her the now scab on her lower lip, it provoked him enough to teach her a lesson. That's when all the mistakes were made. Paige wasn't ordinary, in fact she was wanted in at least three different kingdoms and this one was no exception. There were rules in her capture, and those who neglected them lost.

Rule 1: Don't make direct eye contact. So when her captors caught her off guard and were quite surprised at how easily she was captured they neglected to blindfold her. After all why was there any reason to be afraid of a little girl. So when Paige mouthed off her voice dripping with sarcastic remarks she drew in eye contact from every single one of them.

Rule 2: Don't share personal information. Getting offended from a sarcastic remark often leads to defending or justification of what is being judged. It became clear to her that these men were sensitive about their particular role in the kingdom. She was their ticket to moving up ranks apparently. This knowledge would soon cost them.

Rule 3: Don't let her get into your head. No one ever thinks that someone is going to get inside their head. No one ever plans on it. So when six muscly soldiers with next to no wit decided to take on her capture, they were sorely outwitted.

It took fifteen days before they broke down revealing their true selves. It took fifteen days to break soldiers that had spent every day training and trying to prove themselves, only to have their mental physique undone by words alone. Paige was a dangerous weapon when given the opportune moment. However, it was fifteen days and fifteen nights of barely any food and water while being forced to walk with no shoes and a thin peasant dress that didn't keep her warm when the sun went down. The soldiers didn't care as long as she was transported alive and mostly unharmed.

The men had become sidetracked with yelling at each other in an angry outburst at each other caused by her. She took that moment and ran. She was at a disadvantage, her hands still tied, barefoot, and in unknown woods made escaping even more difficult. She managed to put distance between them whether she had really good hearing or paranoia was getting the better of her their footsteps always sounded close. The escape would be futile if she didn't get herself untied.

"you have nowhere to run... we will find you" angry threats now echoed the woods.

Paige finally collapsed into some bushes as she tried to used the sharp edges of branches to saw the rope. Hot tears swam in her hazel eyes for a few moments before spilling down her cheeks. Her breaths were now steady but still trembled in the fear that was swelling up inside her. She impatiently tried to get herself untied which only made the panic rise. She heard footsteps and froze in fear, she didn't know if it was them. It sounded like more than one but it was quiet, and the soldiers chasing her were loud.

The soldiers that were chasing the poor girl had spread out in pairs of two. They each went in separate directions. Those that went south came to a pause when they noticed castle guards. This was where things might get complicated, considering a castle guard was higher rank than them and they would have to explain themselves. They weren't sure about their king's stance on the matter and if it was exactly acceptable to forsake their duties in pursuit of her capture.

 

[Out Of Words]

The fox hurried through the undergrowth, maybe a little too quickly. Little twigs and leaves kept getting stuck in its fur. The urge to stop and dig them out was strong, but self-preservation remained stronger, for now. Besides, he'd have to take the gag out of his mouth in order to pick the twigs out, and that would be a dead giveaway to where he was. Augie was pretty certain he would not be able to trick the guards again so easily. Wisely, the fox slowed down, more mindful of the little noises made as he maneuvered through the brush.

"Halt!"

The fox froze, ears flattened against its head. Hold still, Augie. Don't breathe, Augie. Don't sneeze, Augie. He chanted this like a mantra in his head, over and over. Well, until he actually sneezed. Thankfully, the enchanted gag stopped the sounds from being heard.

"What's your business here? Who do you report to?"

The voices weren't as close as the fox initially thought, but they weren't as far away as he'd like, either. The animal lifted a paw, moved forward a few inches, then put it back down. Rinse, repeat. One paw after the other, as quietly as Augie could manage. Slowly, step by step, inch by inch. The voices of the guards were still near enough to make out, but only when they spoke loudly. Another minute, and they faded into a muted choir of words. The fox turned his head, as if he would be able to see distant figures through the trees. Maybe he could have, if not for the figure he very nearly bumped into. Correction, did bump into.

Augie froze, left paw lifted, halfway into another step forward. Blue met watery green, and the fox mentally went awwww. Augie had a thing for people in distress, or animals in distress. A thing, as in he found himself wanting to help so much, it was almost to a detriment to his own well being. A bushy tail wagged, the fox's head tilted to the left, then the right. Another moment passed, more like half a moment, and then Augie changed forms back to his human self. Orange and black fur receded as skin and clothing resurfaced. A grin on his face, eyebrows raised, he moved his hands to the ropes around the girl's wrists. Augie completely forgot not everyone might be comfortable around a shifter, but it was probably a mite better than a gagged fox in the woods.

His mouth was moving, but behind the gag, there wasn't any sound. In his head though, it was a different story. Don't move too fast, cause you'll scare her. Oh, her hands are tied! Need to get that, lickity split! Augie's jaw moved almost constantly. Please don't scream. Please don't scream. Please don't.. ooh someone knows how to tie a knot. Dammit. His focus became the ropes around her wrist, facial expressions twisting as he worked the knot free bit by bit. Augie glanced up to the girl's face, cheeks moving as he gave a sheepish grin. Sorry, knots are hard. We'll get this! He totally did not just flash a thumbs up at the girl.

Spoiler alert, he did.

 

[Desert Rose]

The girl's heart nearly dropped when she came face to face with the fox. She didn't know a lot about animals but maybe foxes were okay? She remained hopeful to help keep herself calm as she looked over at him and saw it's tail wag. 'it's so cute.' she thought to herself. That's when her eyes nearly popped out as they couldn't get wide enough. 'not a fox...not a fox! not a fox!' she screamed at herself as her eyes raked up and down the features of what was once a fox.

Given his casual garments they weren't royal or guard like. A merchant perhaps? Either way he seemed to be on her side for the time being as he worked on the getting the rope free she grew hopeful and tried to remain as still as possible. She looked at his thumbs up and then back down at the rope.

As the rope got looser she wriggled her wrists some and growing impatient she managed to slip it off. Whichever soldier tied her up was good at tying knots. She only thought of what horrible things he did with it. Speaking of guards there were voices she didn't recognize and it was too close for comfort. 'more guards?' she thought a bit surprised until her eyes flicked over to the fox man next to her. 'unless' she just sat in silence and waited, it was too risky to move.

The guards that had her in possession quickly lined up and saluted the higher ranking officers. "Sir." they said before one stepped forward to speak. "We report to Commander Zion" he said sheepishly. This was going to be hard to explain especially now that their efforts would be in vain if they didn't get the girl back.

"uh..."

"Sir, we were escorting a young woman back to town, she got spooked and we were split up by bear." he said stammering through his lie.

 

[Out Of Words]

The crown's guards hadn't stopped the search completely, but the couple of men still looking for the young thief were doing so in a different part of the woods. The Captain of the guard greeted the others. He was already irritated. All thanks to a thief who shouldn't have been able to make away with the Leaf of the World in the first place, much less the ineptitude the guards had shown so far in locating the jewel, or the brat.

".. A bear."

Augie had frozen again when he heard the voices. He worked on the ropes until the girl was able to slip both hands out of the knotted mess. That's when he noticed her bare feet. The gag was still in his mouth, his jaw still moved without sound as he pointed to her feet. You need shoes! Augie was already bending down to slip off his own leather boots. They were very well worn, but definitely a step above bare feet on the forest floor. Here, take, take, take! Augie was all but shoving them into her hands. Foxes don't need shoes!

A gloved hand briefly rubbed across his face as the Captain spent a moment to just take a breath, and let it out again. Dealing with the other guards gave him a renewed appreciation for his own regiment. Maybe he won't be so hard on them after all, as long as they find that thief.

"And if your Commander was here now, would you be telling him the same tale?"

Augie knew the best path away from where the guards were still all a talky-talky. He wanted the girl to put the boots on first. It would be quieter, their escape, if she didn't cry out in pain should she step on a rock. Hurry, hurry! We can go. Just follow! Follow! He gestured with his hands, not about to take his gag off yet. Augie moved a step away from the girl while changing forms back to the fox. The bushy tail wagged, his muzzle still gagged, and the fox tapped the girl with a black nose.

Tag!

 

[Desert Rose]

The guard swallowed hard as they repeated the animal they suggested broke their ranks. They all remained silent as the commander questioned and pressed for the truth. The smallest of the men finally gave in and shook his head "Commander... we...." he looked down and gave a sigh. "We captured the witch, the one that's wanted in the other three kingdoms, we thought she would be beneficial to the king's court. But.. uh... she got away." He said looking down feeling like he sounded foolish.

While the voices droned on Paige looked at the fox man very curious now that the initial shock was done and over with. She scrunched her face for a moment as he took off his shoes and practically forced her to grab them. She was confused at first but then smiled realizing he was a fox, he didn't need shoes and from the way his mouth was moving he seemed to be trying to tell her that. She quickly slipped her cold toes into the warm oversized boot and sure enough she looked up and there was a fox.

Paige stayed ducked down as s he silently and as quietly as she could followed the fox. He was her best option after all. What did she have to lose? Her life? well her life was already forfeit with a bounty on her head.

 

[Out Of Words]

The Captain gave a low groan, and with a wave of one hand in the general direction of another member of his regiment, passed the coin, so to speak.

"Go and describe her to Johan over there. If we happen upon someone matching her description, we'll be in touch with your Commander."

The fox was already leading the way. Any time there was a log, or something the girl could possibly trip over, the animal stopped and pointed it out with a paw, or his nose. Augie knew humans were horrible at being all secret secret, so he had to look out for the poor thing. Anything that didn't have a great, fantastical, magical animal form was a poor thing. Poor thing. The fox gave a soft snoffle of a sound. It was a mixture of a sniff, and a blowing of the nose. A snoffle.

Sounds made by the nose weren't masked by the gag. Thankfully, they were far enough from the guards, it didn't give them away. Augie didn't stop moving. For a good hour, or what felt like an hour, the fox led the way deeper into the woods. Occasionally, the fox would nudge the girl with his nose before the tail vigorously wagged. Tag! Or the animal would do a zig zag, circling around a tree or brush, just to see if the girl was still following. Follow the leader! Augie had great fun with his company, but knew they needed to stop soon.

A small stream became their resting spot. It bubbled along, being the loudest noise around. The fox sat down on his haunches, scratched his left ear with a leg, and then snoffled a couple of times before he shifted back to his human shape. Bare feet were dipped into the cool water as Augie reached up to take his gag out at last.

Hope you enjoyed the bubbling stream, because a stream of a different kind took place the moment the cloth was removed from his mouth.

"Oh my stars, that was EXCITING! But my feet hurt now, been a while since I've had to fox it up for so long. Did good though, yeah? Yeah?" Augie's eyes were bright with excitement as he looked to the girl, but the mouth didn't stop there. "I know those probably are too big for you, but we'll have to find you a pair in the next village maybe. Unless you know how to make shoes? Probably not." Augie glanced out across the river, toes wriggled again and again. "I never thought about taking up shoe making, like a fox doesn't need any, so if'n I had a pair that done gave up, I'd just fox it up. Growl growl!"

Augie laughed as he made little pawing motions with his hands, with a quick glance back to the girl. His thoughts were usually all over the place, and so were his words. No filter. From his mind, to his mouth. And then some.

"So yeah, those knots? Wow, they knew how to tie you up. You did good getting away. I was tied up a few times, but they didn't know my secret! OH! OH!" Augie looked a bit worried then and gestured with one hand at the girl. "You can't go a telling. You know, but I saved you, so we good, yeah? Even steven? Who is Steven anyway, and why is he even? I don't get that saying, but whatever. How are your feet? Do you know how to make shoes? No, I asked that already. But you didn't answer."

One hand raised up to slap his forehead a second later. "Oh! Ow, dammit. I remember, you don't know. Yeah, so, there's a thing. I can't shut up. Like, as long as I have thoughts, and good golly do I get thoughts, then well, I say it out loud. Unless I have this thing like so, and ..." The silence returned because Augie had tugged up the cloth over his mouth, like a mask instead of a gag. He gestured to it, jaw still moving away, but he gave two thumbs up.

Snoffle.

 

[Desert Rose]

"yes sir." the guard said and they did as instructed. It seemed that it turned out okay, but they knew they were still gonna get it when they returned to their commander

Paige followed the fox obediently as he lead the way out. She slowly began to relax while still on alert. She quietly giggled at fox when he would bump her and then zoom across the forest floor and up into trees. "fast little thing aren't you." she whispered catching up to him enjoying their little game.

At long last it seemed like it took forever before they could rest. She plopped down beside the water pulling off the boots he lent her and stuck her feet in the running water. It felt good she took in a deep breath and laid down looking up at the trees and the sky.

Sudden peace was interrupted by a voice. She blinked and looked up at the now fox turned man "you can talk." she exclaimed figuring he was a mute or something. She opened her mouth to answer but then shut it as he kept going. It was hard to keep up with what he was saying as he was talking so fast 'is he breathing?' she thought to herself.

Her brow raised as he put the cloth over his mouth. 'interesting magic.' her eyes widened as she grew intrigued of the magic he possessed. Now was her chance to respond. "I can't make shoes... but i'm used to not having them." she said looking at his shoes "if you want to take yours back until I can get my own." she said and then nodded "even steven." she smiled "thanks for saving me." she blushed slightly. Paige never liked the idea of people helping her, but he certainly came in handy.

"Are they after you?" she asked.

Then it sunk in 'wiat.. you're a fox... how do you turn? is it a curse is it magic? are you human?" she asked her many questions as her eyes raked over his features trying to unravel his secrets.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie grinned behind the mask when the girl had her own slew of words tossed his way. He made sure she didn't have any other questions before reaching up to tug the cloth down. Once it was down, the gates were open. "I'm one of them shifter types, like human. Fox. Human. Fox. Just born this way, I think. I haven't seen other foxes in like for ever. Fur ever? HA! Fur ever, get it? Kinda sad, cause foxes are the bestestestest." Occasionally, words just popped into his head that didn't make a lot of sense, but he thought them, so he said them.

"Guessing it'd be closest to magic, if I had to take one. A guess that is. I just sort of .. think and then I am. Human. Fox. Human. Fox." His head tilted to the left. "Again, secrets. I have a really hard time keeping secrets, for obvious reasons, yeah?" Augie laughed then, a true laugh. Unburdened, light and free, and short. "Sigh. Like this jewel thing, that's why those lummoxes are after me and all. I took something from the palace. The chalice from the palace has the brew that is true." And other times, phrases he heard from somewhere will just randomly enter his consciousness.

"They want it back, and it's another secret, you can't talk about. I can't help but talk about it, but you can, so don't. Cause then I'll be even more wanted and.. you said.. no they, they said you were wanted, too?" Yes, that's right, let's "Change the subject so we stop talking about my secrets." GRRR! Augie clasped his hands over his mouth, tight pressure applied to muffle the sounds still coming from him.

"Mmmph, mpfh, fmmmph.." Augie did his best to nod at the girl so she would continue talking for a little while, but it was difficult with hands holding his mouth shut as if the world depended upon it. So, he just lifted one bare foot from the creek to gesture in her general direction while eyebrows lifted repeatedly. "Mmmph, fmmpfh, rmphfmmr."

Wriggle wriggle went the toes.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige looked him over clearly fascinated with coming in contact with a shifter. Surely her luck had changed? That was until he said something unexpected. He was wanted for something entirely different to his nature. From the sound of it he wanted to keep it a secret that he was a fox man which meant of course no one knew. So now the girl was paired with a thief who relied on magic to keep from talking, maybe she wasn't so lucky.

The girl stared at the rushing water while flexing her toes in the water, her body tensed and stopped moving when the fox man mentioned that she was wanted too. Paige cleared her throat and kept fixated on the water, she thought about if she should tell him why, whether it was stupidity or trust, he told her his secrets. Did he want her to know? Could it be helped? Either way she felt the hint of guilt for not being as open, after all he did save her life.

"They call me a witch." she said her eyes flicking over to him filled with a little bit of fear. "I can..." she paused unsure how to explain it, after all she just does it. "I guess it would be like taking control of someone's mind," she managed to articulate.

"There... even steven." she said with a softer smile as she reached her hand out to him for a handshake. "You shared your secret, and I shared mine." She stated with a simple nod. "The name's Paige."

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie grinned behind his hands as he stuck his toes into the creek once more. Wriggle wriggle. Hands dropped away then, but toyed with the cloth around his neck. It was the action of someone who had to keep their hands busy. "Page? Like the pages of a book? I like books. Oh, my name is Augie. LIke.. Awwww-geee, only a harder sounding geee. Or you can call me Duckie, that works too, cause I like ducks. I think they're pretty cute, and I do a mean duck waddle."

He tucked his feet underneath as he moved to stand up, brushing off his pants before offering Paige a helping hand. "So witches, jewels, and thieves, oh my." Augie gave a bit of a laugh as he helped tug the girl up. "So, we should probably keep on keeping on. I know of a farming village, where we could lay low a little while, as long as we help out. Though, gotta warn you, most don't like me around for long, on accounting of the way I can't shut up. Most don't see the mask or gag as a good thing. Maybe we should work out a story on the way over."

Augie hadn't started walking yet, just talking. And talking. And talking. "Like, I could stay as a fox, but if I don't have the gag in place, I'll still yip and make a lot of sounds. And might have some folks thinking my fox pelt would be a nice thing for their home, pet or not. Hmm. Or could say I had.. head damage! I could stay human then, and could just say I'm like your brother and got a mighty hard blow to the head by some ruffians. Oh oh RRRRUUUFFFians!"

Augie made a little growl as he said the word, then laughed as he started to walk. He had to be very mindful of where he placed his bare feet, so his gaze was on the ground. "RRRRUUUFFFians! I like that. Oh oh and if you need me to like, not talk, you can just say shut up, Augie. Or shut it, Augie. Or or... be quiet for crying out loud. Or even if you're nicer, just ask me to put the gag in. It's all good. I've heard it from here to timbuck.. timbuck.. uh.. too. Timbucktoo!"

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige rolled her eyes as he made the book reference. He wasn't entirely wrong, but it didn't mean she really enjoyed it. Though the girl couldn't stay all that irritated with him as he quickly moved onto talking about their next plan of action. The idea of staying with someone that couldn't shut up unless by the use of magic proved troublesome, she found the company to be better than being alone, and she had been alone for a long time. "Duckie..." she repeated with a grin as she took his hand and he helped her stand up. Paige looked down at her now washed up feet and frowned only realizing the many cuts and scrapes, she was both relieved and glad for the footwear while she quickly put them on.

There were moments Augie found to be amusing, like silly little puns, normally she would roll her eyes at such remarks, but she found his sense of humor to be... refreshing. "I'll keep that in mind" she said with a nod figuring it would be better for her to do the talking when it came down to it. Still though, as odd as he seemed he managed to steal from the royal guard. If that didn't say some sort of feat then she didn't know what would.

After awhile of walking and Paige did most of the talking she finally spoke up. "Hey, Duckie?" She asked looking over at him and reaching to grab his arm and bring him to a stop. "Could I try something on you?" She inquired. "I want to see if I can ummm" Paige looked down and kicked at the dirt. "Influence your mind into a form of silence..."

In truth she wanted to see if the fox man held any form of self control in the subconscious of his mind. What Paige wanted was to see how strong he was at a mental game. It was more out of curiosity, but also if it came down to it, and she ever needed to use her power on him, she needed to know if she was able. After all in order to survive one must first look out for themselves. "It won't hurt or anything...." The girl tried to reassure him.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie stopped walking when Paige grabbed his arm. His free hand covered his mouth on instinct, he'd been through similar scenarios before. Most of the time when someone grabbed his arm, it was to punch him for not shutting up. So if he covered his mouth, it gave them enough pause for Augie to get away if need be. No punch today, it's gone away. He still made muted sounds behind the palm of his hand while he tried his best to let Paige speak.

There were a couple of times when the muffled sounds were actually silent, only for a moment or two. Then Augie remembered he was holding his hand over his mouth, so he let go when it was clear Paige had finished talking.

"...cause you're a witch, that's right. Forgot. Don't know what a typical witch looks like, but I'd have said you don't look like a witch. Then again, pretty sure I don't look like a fox. So there's that pesky Steven being even again. I mean.. if it isn't going to hurt or nothing, you can try, I suppose. Like I've seen some people about it, like is it a curse, is it brain damage? No one could really tell, so I gave up hope on it long ago. About the time I spent a small fortune for the gag."

Augie would follow Paige's direction, though she might have had to repeat herself a couple of times. Downside of having such an open book between the mind and the mouth meant Duckie was talking too much to hear what someone else might be saying, at least half the time. Even now, so many thoughts were running amok in his head.

Think a witch, I sought help from once, turned me into a duck for a while. I remember quacking around a lot. Like an annoying amount of quacking, even for me. It was a quack quack here. And a quack quack there. I like duck quacks though, I guess having it come one after another after another is kind of distracting. Hey, at least it wasn't a goose. Those goose honks are loud, and you can't avoid them. Avoid it like the plague. Now, that's a saying I understand. Well, if they mean avoid the item like you would avoid the plague. If they mean avoid the item like you were the plague, that's just stupid. The plague doesn't avoid things if it can infect things. Oh gods.. am I .. am I like an infection? Maybe I've been infected or something. I heard someone once talk about hoof hand mouth disease.

OH GODS! Do I have hoof hand mouth disease? Maybe I've been going about this all wrong! I don't need something to remove a curse, I need a doctor to cure me of a disease!

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige let out a breath she didn't know she was holding as there was a couple of silent moments between the two, something she didn't realize would soon become bothersome. Was silence worse than constant noise? "All right... I don't want this to hurt, so just try to open your mind." She said while trying to concentrate. Normally when she used her magic is was forceful and sometimes could give the person a splitting headache as expected if something were to physically try to enter one's mind. Deep breaths and a few moments later the witch was ready.

Small in frame and stature no one would ever suspect anything out of a poor farmer's daughter. The magic number ended up being ten, or rather just the age Paige ended up showing signs of her weird abilities. A lot had happened since then, both good and bad. While some found her to be evil, others pitied her, but at the end of the day all the girl wanted was to be accepted. Augie gave her that acceptance in just a few short moments of meeting her, even after finding out the girl he stumbled upon and saved was a witch. This debate in her head made it hard to concentrate and a small head ache began to form.

Silent tears began to pool the rim of her eyes only spilling out when blinked. Paige wiped the streak of tears quickly and looked at her wet finger tips. 'Why am I crying?' she thought to herself. A sigh of relief came when her green orbs focused on Augie who was going on about how a witch turned him into a duck. She chuckled lightly and wondered if it was freeing to not have to have an inward battle with oneself.

"You're not diseased." Paige said flatly. "Maybe it's some sort of curse. "You're not an infection." Her voice was much softer now as she now stood next to him.

"I have a head ache so I can't try now, let's just go to the village."

In truth the witch didn't know why she couldn't try at that moment, maybe just too much on her mind and unlike Augie, the girl was silent about it.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie figured it was probably cause he couldn't stop talking, even though he had covered his mouth with his hands when Paige started to try to do ... whatever she was going to do. His mind had continued to race a mile a minute, and his mouth moved at the same time. Muted and muffled sounds escaped, so that was probably pretty distracting. Augie tugged the cloth up to wear like a mask instead of a gag. Towns tended to look at gags with more suspicion than a mask, go figure.

Cheeks bulged a bit with a big smile behind the mask, and Augie started to lead the way. Augie still had to watch where he stepped, as he was barefoot. Maybe he could find some shoes that better fit Paige. He had some coin, so maybe. There was the usual movement of his jaw, but the rest of the way would be filled with the noises of their steps, and anything Paige wanted to say.

The farming village was small, it was clear they made their living off the few fields of crops they had. It looked like they had crops for carrots, potatoes, corn and wheat. It was also clear that everyone in the village helped in some fashion, even toddlers just able to walk. Granted, they didn't so much help, as it was getting them into the habit of the chores needing to be done. They had a small amount of traders who came to the village for their food. It was their livelihood, after all.

The air smelled of freshly tilled earth, and someone was casually plucking away on a lute nearby. A man and woman stopped their work to watch as Paige and Augie neared. When they were close enough, the man smiled and raised a hand, calling out. "Welcome!" His eyes roamed over the pair, quickly deducing they weren't likely here to trade, as they didn't have goods to trade with. "My name is Kendall. This is my wife, Marita. Doesn't look like you are here to trade. What brings you our humble way?"

Augie had to let Paige do the talking, because otherwise their whole story would likely be spilled in a matter of moments. He raised his eyebrows and grinned behind the mask as he looked hopefully to Paige.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige was quiet the rest of the way to the village as she watched where she stepped, even though she had shoes one the boots were still too big and made it a little uneasy with her footing. Luckily the travel wasn't that strenuous and nothing had attacked that gave reason for them to run.

As the two silent strangers pretending to be friends neared the village there was an air of familiarity that brought a shutter over Paige's body. It was too familiar, like a distant memory that she blocked out a long time ago. It was like a memory pushing to the forefront of her mind throbbing in the very center. Everything in her told her to turn back and run, that it wasn't safe, but....

"My name is Kendall. This is my wife, Marita."

Just like that Paige snapped back to this very moment as they now faced the two strangers. The witch didn't like nosy people, and as innocent of a question it may be, it was still uncomfortable. Plastering a fake smile Paige looked at the two husband and wife before moving closer to Augie slipping her hand in his making their fingers intertwine.

"No, we don't have anything to trade. We've been traveling, when we were attacked by bandits... they got everything, except the clothes on our backs." She said quietly as she lifted her hand to dry a few fake tears. "Is there anyway we can get food and rest? We.... we can even work for it." She pleaded with the couple.

Paige held off on introducing them just in case it wasn't safe. There was something too familiar about this place, that she didn't want to give it the power of her name. Was it magic? Either way the feeling burned in her that it was almost too overwhelming so much so that the fake tears soon turned into real ones as she collapsed to her knees still holding tightly onto Augie's hand.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie's eyes went wide and he held onto Paige's hand while Kendall and Marita moved toward the pair. The woman was very concerned, "I'll get Blue setup." She rushed off toward the small cloister of cabins. Kendall sank into a couch, not touching either Augie or Paige. He spoke in as calming and reassuring tone as possible. "You're more than welcome to stay here until you're ready. We'll welcome the help on the farm. When you're ready, I'll show you to the spare cabin you may use."

He stayed in the crouch, just now eyeing Augie's cloth mask. "Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" He gestured toward the mask on the young man's face. Augie gave a little squeeze to Paige's hand, knowing he couldn't really answer because all the beans in the world would be spilled in a matter of moments. Though it seemed like an answer wasn't needed right this moment. Anything either of them might have said would have been interrupted a second later.

"Blue looks good. I just need to get some food and drink." Marita had rushed back, and gave the two a little nod and smile. "If you're ready, I can show you to the cabin. On the way you can tell me what you'd like us to call you." The way she phrased it, they were used to people not wanting to give their real names. The little farm wasn't unaccustomed to such temporary visits. They weren't unprepared to welcome strangers who just needed a little hand in their journey.

Kendall stood up and gave a little nod to his wife, then to Augie and Paige. His voice was a bit lower as he added, "Rest, eat, we can talk tomorrow."

Once they were ready, Marita led them to a cabin with blue painted windows. Seems all the cabins had a color painted window, no two were the same, it was how they differentiated who was staying where. "We have guests who like to keep to themselves, though everyone does help out somehow in return for their room and board. We have communal dinner, but they aren't required. Some folks like to eat on their own. It's fine. We do not judge here. Just ask you do not cause harm to anyone, or anything. Pull your own weight while you are here. And cause no trouble to befall our farm or those who call the farm home."

She gave a small smile, and opened the door for them. "I'll be back momentarily with some food for you." Inside they would find it simple, but clean with a single bed, a small table with two chairs, a fireplace, a large wardrobe sized storage cabinet, and a smaller room with a tub for baths. There were sheets and towels already in place, and oil filled lanterns for when the sun slumbered.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige gave Augie's hand a light squeeze when he gripped her hand tighter. She was about to formulate some sort of excuse or reason as to why her companion had a cloth gag in his mouth. Luckily the abrupt interruption kept from having to answer that question. As the pair followed Marita to the blue cabin that they would now occupy.

Alone at last as they waited for some food to be brought to them. Paige notably relaxed and released Augie's hand that she didn't realize was gripping rather tightly. "sorry." she whispered looking around as she looked through every nook and cranny, drawer, closet, and cabinet. Satisfied that there wasn't any danger at current to where they would be sleeping she sat down and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"This place is familiar... and not in a good way. I just can't put my finger on it... but Augie... I don't think we can trust them." she whispered looking up at him with some concern on her face. "So... let's not stay very long, okay?" she whispered with a soft smile.

The girl knew how to act the part and could be calm and polite as she greeted Marita again and thanked the woman for the food. She figured the could stay a couple of days help the village out in exchange for some supplies. What she didn't know is how long Augie would want to stay with her. After all in the end everyone always left her. So she suspected the same to happen with her odd fox friend.

"Augie... where should we go from here?" she asked trying to sound casual about the topic that clearly was stressing her out.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie waited until he knew they wouldn't have any more interruptions and they could close the cabin door. Only then did he tug down the cloth mask over his mouth, letting it hang loosely around his neck, a familiar place. "They seem okay to me, but I'm sort of weak willed when it comes to food." Even as he spoke about it, Augie was moving to sit down at the table and divide up the meals. He gave Paige a little more than half by the time he was done.

"I tend to not stay anywhere long. A little hard to do, with my ailment and everything. And like I don't know, maybe you could just say I had an accident as a child or something, and I'm mute and self conscious about it? Or uh.. something. I usually do the whole mute route, talking with my hands." Augie laughed a little, pausing only to take a bite of food. Even then, his mouth wanted to keep talking. He did have manners at least, and held a hand up to block his bite from turning into 'see food'.

"Oh, this one time though, someone knew sign language and tried to communicate with me back! It wasn't the best of results, that one." Augie at least could control the volume of his incessant rambling, and was speaking in a quieter tone of voice, lest someone be lingering outside, attempting to listen in. "Why do you have the creepy crawlies here? They seem nice enough, but I know, you can't judge a book by the cover and all. Still, maybe a couple of days is good, rest up, eat up, and I dunno where to go from there. What about you? Do you have family or somewhere you're trying to get to?"

To be considerate of Paige's turn to talk, Augie stuffed his cheeks, and then put the mask back up over his mouth. It blocked the 'see food', and kept his sounds quiet.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige looked at Augie as she watched his hand movements. She paused seeing him eat the food and held in a breath of apprehension as she waited to see if it was poison. After a few minutes of watching Augie eat and listening to him speak freely without the gag the witch finally took a bite of food from her own plate.

"It's like this place is familiar and I can't remember why, but it's not a good feeling of a memory...." She tried to explain.

So he didn't have any direction as to where he was going, and in truth she didn't either. Still it was odd how fate brought the two together, and for some reason she didn't want to leave. "Oh..." It took her a moment to realize he was no longer speaking as he put the gag back on.

Paige took a couple of bites and after swallowing spoke again "I used to have a family." she whispered quietly looking down a moment before shaking her head as though to get rid of a thought. "I don't really have anywhere i'm going... I guess just wherever the wind takes me?" she answered. "I'm wanted in most places so I don't have the luxury of traveling to established cities." She explained.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie finished his food before tugging the mask back down. "It was good food, I like their cooking." It had been on his mind, and so the words left his mouth. "And where the wind takes you, gotta make sure it isn't to the edge of a cliff!" He grinned wide, standing up to take a look around. It was a small enough place they could easily still carry on a conversation. "Is there some place you haven't been to? Some place they don't know about you? We could maybe see about going there."

Augie was opening up drawers and cupboards, checking every nook and cranny. "Leastwise the place is clean. They keep things clean here, that's good. And I don't have anywhere really I have to be. Was just sort of taking odd jobs here and there. I'll need to find a fence to try and sell some of the stuff, like the jewel thing I took last. Kinda pretty though, kinda wanna keep it for myself, truth be told. And told it is. I can't help but tell the truth."

He gave a sideways grin and looked to Paige with a shrug of one shoulder. "Kinda sucks. Being a thief and all, lying is something we should be able to do well, right? Yeah, not me. Can't even be in like one of those fancy thieves guild. Tried once, and soon as they realized I couldn't lie, they pretty much robbed me blind of all the goods I had taken. And then when they realized I couldn't shut up, pretty much tried to kill me. Afraid I'd tell someone where the guild was."

Cue sheepish, somewhat apologetic grin. "And uh.. I did, when I was caught by some guards once. It made them let me go though, so that worked out for me. But yeah, I'm not going back there anytime soon. Who knows who might still be around and no, not good for my health. And sorry, rambling again." He tugged the mask up and gestured for Paige to do some talking if she wanted to.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige seemed to enjoy it when Augie talked and rambled on. He seemed to not have a care in the world even as he made mention of his hardships, he still seemed to be carefree and it certainly made her smile. She nodded in agreement of the place being clean, it definitely was clean and one of the nicest spots she had been in. They didn't seem to recognize her for the time being so perhaps she was just being paranoid.

"well, they don't seem to recognize me here, so maybe I'm just being overly paranoid" she said softly. Perhaps she was overreacting and they could be fine and relatively safe.

"Maybe we can stay here a bit... at least until they tell us to leave. I'll do the lying and you can be the mute." she teased as she finished her food.

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie grinned with a nod. He was pretty easy going, and would go along with a lot as long as it didn't involve pain, bleeding, or any combination thereof. A glance given to Paige before he tugged the mask back down. "If'n you get tired of hearing me talk, you'll say, right? Cause more than one friendship has been ruined cause of it. And I could use a friend. Be nice to have one friend." He settled down on the floor and pulled out the gem he had taken, he wanted to get a better look at it.

"It's pretty, doncha think?" He held the leaf shaped emerald green gem up, turning a bit to catch the light. When it caught it just right, there was a sliver of gold, like the veins of a leaf, deep inside. "It's called Leaf of the World, looks like it could be. Of the world. Pretty sure it's cause it's way valuable or something, but.. I like it cause it's real pretty to look at. And cool to the touch. Well, unless you hold it for a while, and then it holds that heat for a little while."

Augie shrugged and tucked it away again. "I'd hate to have to sell it, but if we need the coin, I know of a few places who will take it, no questions asked. Probably for not as much as it's really worth, but beggars can't be choosers, right? Anyway.. if you want a bath or something, you can go first. I'll get the water, and wait outside. Was that enough food? It was tasty. Nice to have cooked food while it's still warm. And..."

He tugged the mask back up, to give Paige some time to talk without him interrupting.

 

[Desert Rose]

Paige looked at Auggie for a moment as he talked about wanting a friend and then looked down at the gem he held in his hand. She moved to sit on the floor next to him. Her eyes went wider as the gem glinted in the dim light and she saw the sliver of gold. "It is really pretty... almost seems magical." she whispered quietly.

When Augie put the mask back on so she could speak she gently took his hand in hers. "I'd like a friend to." she said with a smile, after all the witch didn't really have any friends. It didn't matter if they were strangers and had only just met, they seemed to have one common enemy, the judgment of others, and it seemed to have ignited some form of a bond.

"It's too pretty to sell... besides i'd like to learn more about it." Paige said standing up "Don't worry about getting coin." she added with a wink. There was a reason she never went hungry and there were slight benefits to her gift.

Paige got ready for the bath after Augie got the water, since he was waiting outside she made sure to clean up quickly not wanting to keep him waiting too long. She finished up and changed clothes that was provided for them. Opening the door the witch smiled "All done..." she said taking a seat outside while she waited for him to finish bathing. The witch didn't mind as she sat outside looking up at the stars still contemplating on what was so familiar about the village they were at.